Paladin Down
by ROTBTDLuver
Summary: When dozens of coalition leaders go missing, the Blade of Marmora is tasked with rescuing them from one of Sendak's cruisers. The last thing the Paladins ever expected was for this mission to go horribly wrong. Now with one of their members fighting for their life, the Paladins struggle to save them and return to their normal lives. Klance. Shallura. Season 5 spoilers.
1. Part One

WARNING: CONTAINS SEASON 5 SPOILERS. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK. This fan fic contains mildly suggestive sexual themes and goes into detail about wounds and blood. It's probably ok for most people, but I figured i might as well put up a warning. It also has a gay ship in it, please no hating.

Paladin Down- Part One

Allura quietly walked down the hallway, haste in her step. It was still early morning in the Castle, but the day had already begun. It was imperative that she found Keith. After several ticks, she arrived at the door to his room. Allura knocked sharply and waited for the door to open. "Keith? It's Allura. Are you in there?" There was no answer. Frowning, she opened the door and glanced inside. The room was dark, but Allura could see that Keith's small bed was made and none of his belongs were laying out. Where could he be? She thought to herself and stepped back, closing the door. Perhaps he was on the training deck. With a deep breath, Allura quickly headed down. To her disappointment, he wasn't there either. Following the training deck, she checked the shuttle bay, the lion hangars, and the kitchen.

"Princess, are you looking for something?" Shiro's voice greeted her when she entered the lounge.

Her eyebrows pulled together and her eyes met Shiro's. He sat comfortably on the large couch, still waking up. "Yes, I'm looking for Keith. Kolivan needs him, but I've looked everywhere and can't find him." She sighed in frustration.

Shiro sat up, a small smile tugging at his lips. "It's Keith. He's around here somewhere. He's probably just enjoying his time on the ship. From what he tells me, the Blades' ships are quite cramped."

"You're probably right." Allura looked around the room. "But Kolivan will have my head if I don't find him in time for their mission." She walked back out the door. "Perhaps the others have seen him." With that, she departed from the room and returned to the sleeping quarters, hoping the other three Paladins were around. Lance's room was the closest to Keith's, so she decided to start there. "Lonce, have you seen Keith?" She knocked on the metallic door. Several ticks later, she opened it and peered inside. "Lonce-" Allura stopped when she caught sight of several articles of clothing strewn across the floor. Amongst them was a red, white, and yellow jacket. Her blue eyes widened and she risked a glance at the bed. In the dim light, she could see two figures in Lance's bed, thankfully covered by a blanket. Her cheeks burned bright red and she flipped on the light. "Keith?!" Keith shot up from resting on Lance's bare chest and fell out of the bed, onto the floor in nothing but his boxers.

"Quiznak! Allura, what are you doing in here?!" He scrambled to his feet, his cheeks turning redder than hers.

Allura held a hand up to her eyes and lowered her gaze to the ground, trying not to look at the nearly naked man before her. "I received a transmission from Kolivan almost a varga ago. I've been looking for you everywhere. I finally decided to come and ask Lonce and the others if they had seen you." As she stammered, she closed the door so no one would see this. Keith grumbled and ran over to a bag in the corner of the room, pulling out his Blades uniform. He slipped it on as fast as he could before grabbing his regular clothes from the floor. When Allura was sure he was dressed, she dropped her hand and crossed her arms, her face still as red as Keith's jacket. "Kolivan will be in the shuttle bay in fifteen doboshes."

"Fifteen? Why the short notice?" Keith paused for a minute, glancing at her in surprise. The red in his cheeks had begun to fade. "Did he say where we're going?"

"He mentioned Olkarion." Allura's eyes settled on Lance. "I- How is he still asleep?" The other young man was still in deep slumber. He had hardly moved the whole time.

Keith's thick eyebrows pulled together and he set down the things in his arms, only his red jacket in his hands. "Lance can sleep through a trainwreck, unlike most of us."

"What's a train?" Allura gave him a puzzled look, tilting her head. Her long white hair fell to the side.

"Erm, its another form of transportation on Earth." Keith muttered as he draped his red jacket over Lance's torso. It was best to just let him sleep. Keith knew he wouldn't be gone long. Missions these quintants didn't last as long as they had leading up to the battle of Naxzela. Allura watched Keith curiously. She had never seen him act this way towards anybody, not even Shiro, who was like a brother to him. Despite Allura's presence, Keith placed a gentle kiss on Lance's forehead before picking up his things again and shoving them in his bag, which he left in Lance's room. Then he opened the door. "Come on; I'd rather not be late." He walked outside and gestured for Allura to come with him. She numbly nodded and turned off the light before exiting as well. The door closed behind them and Keith began leading the way to the shuttle bay. "Allura, if anyone asks, you found me on the training deck." Keith sternly spoke when they were further down the hallway.

Allura frowned. "You've got to be joking me. How long have you two been hiding this from all of us?!" She tried to keep up, but Keith was moving quickly. "Why didn't either of you tell us? We're all a team. We don't keep secrets!"

Keith sighed and stopped, pulling his hood over his head. "Allura, in case you haven't noticed, I haven't really been around much lately. But to answer your question, about half a decaphoeb. We didn't tell anyone because I've been gone for most of it and we weren't ready."

"You've been together for five phoebs?!" She gasped.

He began walking again. "Yes. Allura, I need to get going or Kolivan won't be too happy. Please don't tell anyone about us until we've had a chance to talk. We can do that when I get back from Olkarion."

"You have my word, Keith." Allura sighed as they reached the shuttle bay. Kolivan's shuttle pulled into the bay as the door closed behind the pair. "Be safe." She muttered as Keith continued towards the shuttle. He gave her a small nod before his mask formed over his face. He hopped into the small ship and sat beside Kolivan, who had his mask up.

"Fill me in." Keith spoke as the shuttle lifted off the ground and returned to space.

"Last night, several important figures from the Olkarion rebel forces were captured by the Galra. The battlecruiser has not yet left the system. We need to sneak on to it and rescue the rebels inside before they are handed over to Sendak." Kolivan leaned forward, pulling up a hologram of the cruiser.

Keith frowned beneath his mask. "Isn't this a type of mission for Voltron? This is risky for the Blades."

"Voltron has been on three major missions in the past movement. The Paladins need time to rest and prepare for their next. The Blades will do what we must. Today that means rescuing rebels." Kolivan looked down at Keith, who only nodded slowly. It was risky, but he knew it had to be done. His leader faced the other Blades in the shuttle. "We must exercise caution when we board the ship. The goal is to get in and get out with the rebels. We cannot risk engaging in a battle with a fleet." Keith listened silently as Kolivan explained their plan of attack.

Doboshes later, their cloaked shuttle latched on to the great Galra battlecruiser and the Blades slipped inside, quickly moving down the dark hallways towards the prisoner level. The men only stopped when sentries were nearby, taking cover to avoid being seen. Keith kept his eyes on Kolivan, watching for orders and following his lead. After what felt like ages, the Blades reached the prison block, finding a dozen sentries guarding the corridor. "Take them out quickly and quietly. We can't risk them tripping an alarm." Kolivan spoke quietly to his men. One by one they nodded and withdrew their blades. On Kolivan's mark, the Blades attacked, taking out the sentries. Keith ran ahead of the others, stopping the two at the end of the hallway. His blade sunk into the first's chest and he quickly forced the second into a wall, bashing in its metallic head. When both were down, Keith yanked his blade out of the first sentry and peered down an intersection in the hallway, making sure no one had heard them and were coming. He breathed in deeply and glanced back at Kolivan, nodding. Within ticks, the fight was over and one of the Blades managed to get all of the prison doors open.

"Kolivan, we are forever in your debt. Thank you for coming for us!" A familiar voice spoke above the quiet whispers in the hallway. Keith turned to see Ryner and Olia standing in front of his leader. They, and all the other prisoners, were dressed in the typical, tattered, Galra prisoner uniform. Keith recognized several of the other rebels.

"It's not over yet. We need to get out of here." Kolivan nodded to the Olkari woman. Captain Olia shifted at her side, glancing around nervously. They didn't have long before the next patrol came. When the Blades had all the rebel prisoners, Kolivan began leading the way back to their shuttle. Ryner gestured for the other rebels to follow. The Blades flanked around the rebels, protecting them from all sides. Keith and two of his comrades held up the rear. They were almost back when the alarm began to sound.

"The next patrol must have arrived at the prison block!" Keith hissed, pulling his blade out.

Kolivan began running down the corridor. "Move! Move! Move!" He shouted over his shoulder. Ryner and the other rebels quickly followed him, knowing they were in imminent danger of getting caught. Keith glanced around nervously as they sprinted through the halls. "Prepare launch sequence." Kolivan ran into the ship, getting ready to take off. The Blades began ushering in the rebels as sentries down the hall began opening fire on them. Several of the dozens of rebels screamed in alarm and ducked down, trying to take cover.

"Get in! Hurry!" Keith shouted to them as he managed to deflect a blast with his blade. He knew Kolivan would take off in only ticks. They would not be able to hold off all the sentries and Galra soldiers that were coming. The rebels filed in as quickly as they could, but it was still taking too long. They and some of the Blades had made it in when something just down the hallway exploded, knocking back Keith and the remaining Blades. Keith's body collided with a wall and he let out a groan, trying to climb to his feet. "No!" His eyes widened. Flames enveloped the hallway, cutting off their exit to the shuttle. The remaining Blades were trapped. The metal around them creaked and a large clang came from the other side of the wall. Kolivan and the ship had left. They were on their own. The other five Blades with Keith slowly rose to their feet, most injured from debris. "Come on. We need to find another way to get off this cruiser." Keith pulled the last Blade to her feet. "Maybe we can steal a few Galra fighter jets."

"Lead the way, Keith. We're with you." The woman beside him, Ilun, spoke. He nodded and ran in the opposite direction of the fire. All six Blades pulled out their knives again and moved down the hallways, trying to avoid as many sentries as they could.

Keith quickly found a hangar. "This is going to be hairy. There are sentries and soldiers everywhere." He peered around a doorway.

"I'll take the risk over becoming a prisoner." A Blade spoke behind him in a hushed voice. Keith drew in a deep breath before slipping through the large doorway, leading the way in.

"Get to a fighter as quickly as you can!" Keith took cover behind several cargo containers, followed by the others. They nodded and peered around the containers, setting their sights on the closest fighters. Keith watched the sentries for several ticks, waiting for the right time to proceed. When they were spaced far enough apart, he gave them the signal before heading to a fighter jet farther away. He wanted to give the others a chance at getting to ones that were closer. The five Blades followed his lead, scrambling towards the ships. Sentries and Galra soldiers opened fire on them, but the Blades were deft on their feet, avoiding the blasts as best they could. By the time Keith had reached his own fighter, the other five had climbed into theirs and started them. Keith nodded to himself and pried the door open, stepping in. However, a blast punched into his shoulder, burning through his suit. Keith let out a hiss and forced the door shut, running to the cockpit. He hurriedly cranked the ship up and launched after the other Blades, punching their way through the closing hangar door. Despite their narrow escape, Keith couldn't relax or look at his wound. The Galra cruiser would send fighters after them. Instead, Keith tried to contact Kolivan through the communicator in his suit. "Kolivan. It's Keith. Do you copy?"

"Keith, I'm here." Kolivan's voice answered back. "What's your status?"

"We managed to escape on some Galra fighter jets. I'm sure there will be more coming for us shortly. Are you almost to Olkarion?" Keith huffed and tried to catch up with the other Blades.

There were several ticks of silence before his leader replied. "Yes."

"Keith, there are six Galra fighters on your seven." Ilun's voice interrupted.

Keith glanced at his scanners, seeing them. His mask retracted from his face as his eyebrows pulled together. "Quiznak. Take evasive action. Protect the shuttle at all costs. I'm going to try and distract them from the shuttle." With that, he pulled away from the others, drawing the fighters away as they neared Olkarion. Three of the fighters followed after him, while the others broke off to go after the Blades. Keith's fighter shot forward, rocketing over the titanic mountain range around Olkarion. A smug smile crossed his pale face and he dove towards the mountains, which he could use for cover from the fighters.

"I've been hit." A Blade's voice came through his communicator. "I'm going do-" An explosion in the distance cut the voice off. Keith's lips pulled down and he made a sharp turn into an opening in the mountain's ridges, drawing the three fighters on his tail in there. At a dead end in the cramped area, he pulled up and seized the opportunity to fire down at the fighters. Two of the ships went down, but the third swerved around his blasts. Keith grumbled and focused on flying away as it returned fire.

"More Galra fighters inbound!" He heard Ilun again. "There's too many. We'll be overrun."

"Hang tight!" Keith shouted, noticing four more fighters gaining on him. "You gotta be kidding me." He growled and attempted to weave through the mountain ridges again. When the other four were in range, they began to fire on him as well. Ticks later, a blast hit his fighter and the whole thing shook. Keith groaned. "I'm taking heavy fire. I can't shake them!" He managed to take one more out before another blast shook his fighter. He wasn't going to last much longer. Keith's eyebrows pulled together and he grunted, the wound on his shoulder flaring up. An explosion violently shook his ship again, but this time, alarms began blaring and he looked at his dashboard. His eyes widened. "I just lost a wing. I'm going down. Ilun, Kolivan, you're on your own. I'm sorry." Black smoke trailed behind him as his fighter began to nosedive towards the surface, spinning out of control. Keith tried to pilot it as best he could, but there wasn't much he could do.

"Keith, no!" Ilun's voice became distorted as the small ship accelerated towards a cliff in the titanic mountains.

Keith's heart raced in his chest and he tensed as his life flashed before his eyes. Beating up Iverson and being booted from the Garrison. Finding Shiro and carrying him out with Lance. Finding the Lions. Forming Voltron. Going to the mall with Coran. Discovering the truth about his heritage. His time with Hunk in the Weblum. The time he spent with Pidge. Allura apologizing for mistrusting him. Lotor saving him in the Battle of Naxzela. Finding his mother, Krolia. Helping Kuro figure out who he was and getting Shiro back on his feet. All his moments with Lance. As the rocks drew closer, he squeezed his eyes shut and a single tear shot down his cheek. "I'm sorry, Lance. I won't be coming home after all." He whispered to himself and drew in a deep breath as his ship slammed into the cliff.

Captain Olia and Ryner sat stiffly beside Kolivan, their eyes wide in shock. A Blade of Marmora communicator was in Olia's hand. "Keith? Keith, are you there?!" She shakily lowered her hand when there was no response. Her eyes slowly met Ryner's. The best pilot in the rebellion had just been shot down. The Olkari woman wrapped her arm around her comrade and silence enveloped them and the rest of the shuttle.

"Vroka was just shot down as well." Kolivan's right-hand man announced. They had lost half their fighters. This wasn't going to end well.

Kolivan's face hardened and he held his hand out for the communicator. Olia quietly gave it to him. Kolivan held it out in front of him and activated it, a static blue screen appearing over it. "Princess Allura, can you hear me?"

"Kolivan, I'm here." The screen flickered for a tick before the princess appeared, Coran and Shiro standing behind her. "What's going on?" As she spoke, the shuttle shook violently and Kolivan struggled to stay sitting, grabbing on to the seat behind him.

"We were just hit again. Another hit like that and we'll be joining the rest of our pilots." Kolivan's right hand called again. Kolivan's eyebrows pulled together.

"Princess, we need immediate assistance on Olkarion. We rescued the captured rebels, but the Galra cruiser and its fighter jets are gunning us down. I've lost several of my men. We won't last much longer." His face hardened more as he spoke.

Allura's eyes widened. "The Castle and Voltron will be there in one dobosh to assist you. Hang tight."

"And princess, three of my men are in Galra fighters. It was the only way they could escape the cruiser." He added. He didn't want to lose any more men.

"Ten-four." She nodded. "When we arrive, dock in our shuttle bay. We'll take care of the fleet. But do it quickly so we can raise the particle barrier." With that, the transmission ended.

"Why didn't you tell them about Keith?" Olia stared at him with wide eyes. "They should know."

Kolivan set down the communicator and looked at her. "The last thing we need is Voltron to be off their game while rescuing us. I will tell them once we are all safe." Olia nodded numbly, understanding. Thirty ticks later, a loud roar shattered the silence. "Right on time, Voltron." Kolivan glanced out the window of the cockpit, seeing the five lions and the Castle in the distance. The lions cleared a path to the Castle and the small shuttle shot forward, quickly docking in the shuttle bay with the three remaining fighters.

The particle barrier enveloped the Castle as it and the lions shot down the Galra fighters. The Galra cruiser fired upon the Castle, but the ion cannon for once couldn't break through the barrier. Coran directed the Castle to aim at the cruiser, firing again and again. When most of the fighters had been taken care of, the lions turned their attention to the cruiser, helping Coran take it out. A dobosh later, the fleet was destroyed and the lions returned to the Castle, docking in their hangars. The five Paladins ran to the shuttle bay, where the rebels and Blade of Marmora were climbing out of their ships. "Kolivan, is everyone okay?" Shiro ran up to the large group of people, his eyes scanning for anyone who was injured.

"Thanks to you, Paladins." Kolivan shook Shiro's arm before glancing at his men. The other four Paladins arrived at the same time, all huffing from running. "Thank you for coming to our aid. I fear that if we had gone another dobosh longer without you, we would not have made it."

Shiro nodded and stepped back as Ilun and the other two pilots climbed out of their ships. One by one, they pushed back their hoods and retracted their masks. Behind Kolivan, the shuttle powered down and the rest of the crew stepped out. Allura glanced over all the Blades, her eyebrows pulling together. They were all the roughly the same height and had the same build. There was no sign of the smallest Blade. Allura glanced at Lance and she saw the same expression on his tan face. Her gaze returned to Kolivan. Lance looked around anxiously, knots forming in his stomach. Olia and Ryner approached Kolivan, grief on their faces. Olia spoke up. "Kolivan, they deserve to know."

"Know what?" Shiro raised an eyebrow and looked down at Olia and Ryner, then returned his gaze to Kolivan.

Allura let out a shaky breath and stepped forward. "Where is he?" Something was off. "Where is Keith?" Around her, Shiro, Hunk, and Pidge straightened, their eyes widening, and glanced around, noticing it too. A lump formed in Lance's throat.

Kolivan's jaw tightened as Olia's sad eyes met Allura's. Ilun glanced at the two pilots beside her. "When we were in the cruiser, an explosion separated most of the Blades from the ship. We had to steal Galra fighters to escape. Keith led us there and we all managed to make it out, but the cruiser sent fighters after us. Keith tried to draw them away from the shuttle so the rebels could escape…" Ilun spoke since Kolivan took too long to answer. Her yellow eyes slowly met with all of the Paladins'. "His fighter took heavy fire and he lost a wing. He crashed full force into the mountains of Olkarion. I'm so sorry." She bowed her head.

"When did this happen?" Shiro choked on his words, his gaze lowering. Allura staggered back several steps back as Lance dropped to his knees. Hunk and Pidge exchanged tearful glances.

"Right before we called you for support. We lost him and two other pilots within a dobosh." Kolivan crossed his arms. Allura's eyes returned to Lance as grief washed over her. Tears welled up in his eyes, but they didn't spill over on to his cheeks. After several ticks, his face hardened and he pushed himself off the ground. Lance began walking out of the room and in the direction of the lion hangars.

"Lance, where are you going?" Hunk turned and watched his friend walk away.

Lance paused and looked over his shoulder. His sea blue eyes met the other Paladins'. "I'm going to find Keith."

"Kid, I don't think you understand." Kolivan spoke up, walking closer to the Paladins. "Keith crashed full force into a mountain. That's not something you can walk away from, let alone survive. There's probably nothing of him or his ship left."

Lance's eyebrows pulled together and his face hardened. He turned back to face Kolivan. "This is Keith we're talking about. When Shiro went missing after our second battle with Zarkon, Keith never gave up looking for him. It was the same way after we found out about Kuro. Keith deserves the same amount of loyalty. If there's a slight chance that he's alive, I'm going to take it. If he's not, then the least we can do is bring him home." Kolivan's expression softened while a pained look crossed Shiro's face. Shiro had missed so much during his time trapped within the black lion.

"I'm coming with you." Allura spoke, walking up to him. Lance nodded slowly. He wanted to cry so badly, but he knew he couldn't in front of the others.

"As am I." Shiro slipped his helmet on and approached the other two Paladins. Hunk and Pidge exchanged more glances before they both nodded and joined their friends, also putting on their helmets. "Let's bring our Paladin home." Shiro led the way to the lion hangars. The others followed him, determination in their steps. Allura silently walked beside Lance as they moved, trying to support him without anyone noticing. She had made a promise to Keith and she was going to keep it.

When the Paladins reached the hangar, they split off their separate directions to head to their lions. However, Allura stopped at the entrance to Blue's hangar and watched Lance start down the path to Red's. "Lonce." She ran to him after a tick. He stopped and looked at her. To his surprise, she threw her arms around him and hugged him tightly.

He awkwardly hugged her back, not sure what was going on. "Allura, what are you-"

"I know you need a hug." She whispered, resting her chin on his shoulder. Lance blinked slowly and she could sense his confusion. She quietly pulled back and looked up at him. "I know about you and Keith. I'm so sorry." She placed her hand on his arm, trying to be reassuring. "We're going to find him. We're going to bring him home to you."

The tears in Lance's eyes finally spilled over, soaking his face. "I… How do you know?" He broke down in front of her, barely fighting the sobs.

Her eyes lowered and she sighed sadly. "When I received the transmission from Kolivan this morning, I went to go find Keith, but I couldn't find him anywhere. So I went into your room to ask if you had seen him and I found you two. Lonce, I won't tell anyone. I promised Keith I wouldn't and I'm going to keep that promise." He nodded slowly and began wiping away his tears. Allura let go of his arms so he could. "Now let's go get him." She patted his shoulder and began heading back towards Blue.

"Allura?" Lance called after her and she paused, looking back at him. "Thank you." He forced himself to breathe. She gave him a small smile before slipping on her helmet and running to her lion. Lance drew in a shaky breath and looked ahead at his lion. Keith's lion. His face grew serious and he ran to Red. "I'm going to find you, babe." He pulled his helmet over his head.

Pain consumed Keith like the ocean. It came in continuous waves, lapping at his skin and dragging him further out to sea. It pulled him down deeper, threatening to drown him. Keith's mind swam, fighting against the current so he could wake up. He tried to breathe but each breath was more painful than the last. Keith knew he was dying. He could have slipped back into the darkness and just let it happen, but he held on to what little time he had left. Keith cracked his eyes open and groaned, his vision spinning. He blinked until he could see clearly and he numbly looked around. It was dark and cramped. It was cold. Keith still sat in the chair of the Galra fighter jet, but the front of the vessel had been destroyed in the collision. Sharp rocks replaced the dashboard and controls that had been in front of him only doboshes ago. Shattered glass was everywhere. It was on the floor and the rocks. It was in his uniform and skin, tearing him open more with every little move. The sharp rocks that had destroyed the front of the ship had also damaged him. They pinned his legs to the seat he was in, crushing them until his bones had shattered in different places. Keith tried to breathe, but could only wince as he looked down at his torso. A long shaft of rock had pierced a large section of his lower abdomen, tearing through his organs and rendering him motionless. Blood seeped slowly out of the great wound, staining the rocks red and soaking his Blades uniform. Keith wheezed and coughed, blood dripping from the corners of lips down his chin. Keith was surprised he had survived the crash, given his speed, but he knew this would still be the end. Keith's left hand wrapped around the rock in his torso, applying some pressure to the edges of his wound.

"K-Koli-van." He tried to speak, barely having the lung capacity to do so. "Can you… h-hear me…?" He tried again. Despite the situation, he wanted someone to come for him. It would be nice to at least have someone there when he died. "K-Kolivan?" There was no response. Communications were out. No one knew where he was or that he had lived for small amount of time. No one would be coming. A tear streaked down his cheek as he thought about Lance. What he wouldn't give to have Lance here. What he wouldn't give to say goodbye or 'I love you' one last time. His boyfriend would never know how much he loved him. Keith squeezed his eyes shut, fighting the pain. But it was a losing battle. The waves continued to draw him out, pulling him away from the shore. It loosened his grip on his wound and told him to relax. They waved his eyes closed and filled his head with a sudden heaviness, pulling him into the depths of the ocean.

Lance stared anxiously out of Red's window, searching for the fallen Galra fighter. He and the other Paladins had been looking for Keith for half a varga and still hadn't found him. They had split up to cover more ground around Olkarion's titanic mountain range but even then it didn't seem to be enough. Allura had found two Galra fighters, but both still had wings, so they continued to search. Lance had found another fighter some distance away from the first two, but once again, it also had both wings. "How hard is it to find a single winged Galra fighter?" Lance heard Allura say at some point, but he ignored it. He was losing hope of finding Keith. Every dobosh it took to find him was one step closer to losing him.

"Where do you think he is, Red?" Lance whispered to his lion, his heart breaking a little more. The great lion was silent as it flew over the mountain ranges. Lance slouched in his seat and had the lion move higher into the sky, trying to see if he could see more. After another dobosh, he sighed. "What if Kolivan was right? What if there is nothing left of Keith or his ship?"

"Lance, I don't think that's physically possible." Pidge spoke. "Those fighters may go fast, but they can't go fast enough to hit the ground at a speed that would completely destroy the fighter. There would still be pieces of it."

"I don't think that made any of us feel better, Pidge." Shiro responded.

"What I'm trying to say is that Kolivan is wrong. We should be able to find at least the fighter..." Pidge trailed off, deciding not to finish the rest of her sentence. She couldn't say the same about being able to find Keith. Speeds that high had been known in Earth's history to completely destroy a human.

Lance continued to look, hoping for some kind of sign. A glint of light off metal, smoke from the crash. Something. Anything that would lead him to Keith. His eyebrows pulled together and he continued flying over the mountain range until Red suddenly stopped mid-air several doboshes later. Lance barely stopped himself from flying out of the seat. "Red, what the cheese?" He huffed and climbed back into it, groaning.

"Lance, are you okay?" Shiro asked, concern clear in his voice.

"Uh, yeah. I'm fine. I can't say the same about my lion. Red just suddenly stopped and sent me flying out of my seat." Lance shook his head, glancing around.

"Stopped?" Allura replied. "Lonce, I think Red might be trying to tell you something. The red lion was originally Keith's. Perhaps it senses he's near."

Lance sat up in his seat and looked out the window. "What is it Red? Can you show me?" He couldn't see anything in particular that stuck out in the scene out the window. Lance drew in a deep breath and loosened his grip on the controls, allowing the red lion to take over. Show me, Red. The controls moved in his hands and the great lion turned in the direction they had just come from. A loud roar came from its mouth and Red shot forward, diving into the ridge. Lance flew back into his seat and held on for dear life. "He's definitely on to something, but I have no idea what yet."

"Keep us updated, Lance, we'll keep looking." Shiro responded.

The red lion continued to fly through canyons in the mountain range, taking select turns and routes. Lance's eyes scanned the area ahead as Red led the way, his heart pounding in his chest. Several ticks later, the great lion began to slow down until a Galra fighter came into view. Lance's eyes widened as he took in the scene. The fighter had smashed right into a cliff, destroying the front of the ship. Lance took back over the controls and hovered just above the wrecked craft. His eyebrows pulled up when he saw that it only had one wing. He immediately set the lion down on the left side of the ship. "Guys." Lance breathed. "Red just led me straight to a crashed Galra fighter with only one wing. But if Keith is in there, its gonna be really bad."

"What do you mean?" Hunk asked as Lance had Red move several steps forward.

"The entire front of the ship is gone." Lance breathed, horror creeping on to his face. "It crashed nose first into a cliff." Silence responded to Lance as he mustered up the courage. The door to the ship had been crushed during the impact. He would have to blast his way into it. "Okay, Red. Give the back end of the ship a small blast, only enough to breach the hull. We don't want to hurt Keith if he's in there." The lion moved its head slightly and fired, punching a hole into the crashed ship. Lance stood up and made his way to the mouth, climbing out of the lion and into the dark ship. "Keith? Are you in here?" He glanced around anxiously, fumbling around in the dark. "Keith?" An almost inaudible groan called Lance to the front. He ran when he caught a glimpse of black hair. Nothing could have prepared him for the horror that waited there.

"Lance, is he in there?" Shiro's voice was lost in Lance's mind as he sank to his knees, taking in his boyfriend's scratched face and the blood on his lips. The rock impaled in his lower abdomen was traumatizing to see. "Lance?" Lance shifted closer and pressed his fingers against Keith's paler than normal neck. After a long tick, he felt an incredibly weak pulse. "Lance?!"

Lance drew in a shaky breath. "Shiro. He's here." His blue eyes glanced at Keith's torso.

"Is he…?" Pidge timidly asked, not wanting to finish the sentence.

"He's alive, but he barely has a pulse. It's a lot worse than I was expecting." He looked around, trying to figure out how to get Keith out. "I'm going to try and get him out, but he needs to be put in a healing pod immediately or he will die."

"I'll leave now and prepare a pod." Allura responded quickly.

After several ticks, Shiro's voice came through. "Do you need help getting him out?"

"Honestly, I don't know. It's really cramped in here. I think I know how to get him, but I have to do it really carefully." Lance sighed, glancing at the rocks again. "Go ahead to the Castle. I'll be there with Keith in no time."

"Good luck, Lance." Shiro replied one last time.

Lance shakily removed his helmet and tossed it towards the opening Red had made. He carefully placed his hands on Keith's face. "Keith? Can you hear me?" He could barely spoke above a whisper. His eyes watched for any movement on his face. "Keith, it's Lance."

After a few ticks, Keith's head shifted slightly and his eyes cracked open, barely able to focus. Lance's heart pounded in his chest. Eventually, Keith's eyes met his and he wheezed. "L-Lance?" He spoke weakly. "A-are you… really here?"

Lance stroked Keith's face gently, his own face softening. "Yes, babe, I'm here." He choked back tears. "I'm going to get you out of here."

A small smile crossed Keith's exhausted face, but it quickly disappeared as he wheezed. A coughing fit followed and Lance tried to keep Keith's head up as more blood seeped out of his lips. "L-Lance… you c-can't… get me out… of t-this." Keith sank in Lance's hands and his eyes looked down at the rock lodged in his stomach. "I can't… e-even move."

"I can't let you die, Keith." Tears welled up in Lance's eyes and he straightened. "I need you." He stammered for several ticks. "I love you."

The small smile returned to Keith's face and he weakly moved his right arm from beside his leg, placing his blood-free hand on Lance's face. "I l-love you, too, Lance." Lance shifted one of his hands to hold Keith's on his face.

Lance's face slowly grew serious. "Please, let me try to save you." He barely whispered.

"Y-you can try." Keith squeezed his eyes shut, fighting another wave of pain. Lance gently squeezed his hand. When most of the pain subdued, Keith's blue-grey eyes opened again. "H-how are you… going t-to get… me out?" He paused to catch his breath. "I'm p-pinned in two… places and one i-is both k-killing… me and keeping me alive."

Lance carefully laid Keith's arm back down beside his thigh and stood up, thinking. Keith had a point. The rock impaled in his stomach was a major issue, but because it was still in there, it was preventing him from bleeding out. "I'll probably have to sever this rock, that way you can move, but won't bleed out. Can you move your legs at all?" He glanced at Keith's legs and the rocks around them. They were definitely were stuck.

"B-barely…" Keith breathed. "I think they're… both broken."

Lance huffed and leaned on the chair's arm. "You have your blade, right? The one made of luxite?"

Keith wearily glanced up at him. "Of c-course I do." He winced. "The only p-problem… is it's on… my back."

"Quiznak." Lance shifted closer and looked over Keith's torso. He could see the handle of the blade, but he didn't want to hurt Keith more by having him lean further on to the rock. He huffed again. "I might be able to get it without hurting you. Lift up your arm as best you can." Keith nodded quietly and did as Lance asked, raising his arm. Lance carefully reached behind Keith's back and began pulling the blade from the sheath. When he had it almost out, he gave Keith a look. "It's a good thing they call me the tailor-"

"Oh my g-god. Stop." Keith's eyes narrowed. Leave it to Lance to be making jokes in this situation.

Lance grinned and pulled the blade out, letting Keith rest his arm again. "That's not what you said last night."

Some color returned to Keith's deathly pale cheeks and he looked away from his boyfriend. "If I wasn't dying, I'd p-punch... you right now."

"No, you wouldn't." Lance chuckled and knelt down beside the rocks, beginning to carefully chisel away the rocks around Keith's legs. "I figure I'll start around your legs. We'll figure out what to do with the rock in your stomach afterward." Keith nodded quietly and sank into his chair, wincing as more pain flared up. Keith's blade easily sliced through the rock. Within a dobosh, Lance was able to free Keith's legs. He scooped the loose rock out before standing. "How are you doing?" He asked when he saw Keith wince again. His skin had nearly gone white.

"I can… barely… breathe." Keith wheezed, his eyes wandering.

Lance's eyebrows pulled together. "Hang in there, I just have to cut this rock, then we can get you to a healing pod." Keith nodded slowly. Lance drew in a deep breath and he focused on the rock impaling Keith's torso. He needed to cut it close but not so close that Keith started bleeding because the rock wasn't doing its job. Lance settled for six inches away from Keith's body and carefully made the cut. Keith let out a pained groan and squeezed his eyes shut. Lance winced at the groan and tried his best not to hurt him more. When it was done, he let out a relieved sigh. "Come on, let's get you out of here." Lance leaned down and slipped his hands beneath Keith's arms, quickly slipping the blade into its sheath before holding him. Keith weakly wrapped his arms around Lance's back and buried his face in his neck. Lance pulled Keith out of the chair as gently as he could, watching for any signs of distress.

At first, Keith seemed to do fine. But when the pressure of the large rock was removed, the rest of the rock in his stomach shifted, releasing a wave pain that was too much for him to bear. His face went white and he had to fight the urge to puke. "Lance." He gasped and his grip on him loosened, his arms sliding down the length of Lance's back. A tear streaked down his cheek as he blacked out.

"Keith?" Lance immediately felt the change in his boyfriend and his arms tightened around Keith's frail body, catching him. He quickly set him down on the ground beside the chair, trying to see what happened. Keith laid there below him lifelessly. "Keith?!" Lance's eyes widened and felt for his pulse. It was even weaker than before. Tears streamed down his face as he pulled Keith into his lap. "Come on, wake up." He whispered just before warmth surrounded his hand. "Oh, no." He glanced down to see that blood was seeping from Keith's stomach. "Keith, stay with me. Please." Keith's hand weakly wrapped around Lance's wrist, the one over his wound. His blue-grey eyes cracked open for a fraction of a second, then, with a ragged breath, they closed and his hand slipped from Lance's wrist. Lance choked back a sob and laid Keith down. He urgently grabbed his helmet, putting it on. Then Lance scooped down and picked up Keith, carrying him bridal style in the red lion.

"Lance, it's been ten doboshes. What's going on?" Shiro's voice came through the communicator in Lance's helmet as he sat down in the chair, Keith laying across his lap. Lance pressed Keith's head on to his chest as Red launched from the ground, flying into space towards the Castle.

"Shiro, it took forever to get Keith free and when I did, he crashed. I just boarded Red. We'll be there in the infirmary in thirty ticks. Please tell me the pod and a healing suit is ready to go." Lance spoke quickly. He glanced down at Keith's stomach. He was bleeding more now. Nearly all of the stomach section of his uniform had been soaked with blood, which then spread to Lance's armor and the seat beneath them.

"We're ready, just bring him in as fast as you can, Lonce." Allura responded. Red shot into the hangar and Lance hurried out of the lion, carrying Keith the same way he had before. Keith's arms and head hung loosely. Lance ran as fast as he could to the infirmary, where he knew the others were waiting. A dim light greeted him as he blew into the infirmary. Allura and Shiro stood anxiously in the center, but they took action as soon as Lance entered. "Lay him down on here." Allura gestured to a floating stretcher she had set up.

Lance carefully laid Keith's limp form on to it. "He's got a rock in his stomach, he took a blast to the shoulder, both of his legs are severely broken and there's glass everywhere." He quickly explained, so the other two knew what they were dealing with, and removed his helmet, setting it on the floor. Allura and Shiro exchanged horrified looks. Lance had said it was bad, but they hadn't thought it was this bad.

Allura's face hardened. "We need to remove Keith's uniform, pull out that rock, and put him in the healing suit." Lance nodded and quickly unlatched the armor breastplate on the uniform and slipped it off before removing Keith's bracers. Shiro and Allura worked to remove the rest of the uniform, carefully sliding the fabric over the rock in his abdomen. Once Keith's Blades uniform was removed, Allura pulled the healing suit over his legs, stopping just below the bloodstained rock. Lance's eyes met Shiro's. He could see the pain in his irises. Keith was like a little brother to him. Shiro's face hardened as his hand wrapped around the large rock embedded in the dying man.

"Do it." Lance spoke, holding his breath. He and Allura held the sleeves of the healing suit, ready to finish it putting it on as soon as the rock was free. They wouldn't have long to get him in the pod once it was gone. Shiro squeezed his eyes shut and yanked on the rock, pulling it out on the first try. Blood immediately flowed out of the massive wound and Shiro staggered back. Lance and Allura made quick work of the suit. Shiro dropped the heavy rock on to the floor and scooped Keith up, running up to the healing pod. Allura slipped behind the control panel and activated the pod. Shiro set Keith in and moved out of the way as Allura locked the pod and started the freezing process. Inside the pod, Keith's body straightened as he froze, beginning the healing process. Shiro sank to his knees, his eyes never leaving Keith. Lance stood numbly behind him, hardly able to breathe. He choked back tears. Crying would have to wait for when the others weren't around.

"You did it, Lonce." Allura slowly walked up to both men. Lance hardly looked at her. "You brought him home. You saved him."

Lance's expression wavered. "It's not over yet." He slowly knelt down beside Shiro, who looked over at him. "Not until he's really back with us." His eyes met Shiro's. Allura sat between them, placing her hands on their shoulders. Only time would tell if they had really saved him. The three Paladins grew quiet.

Allura glanced down at herself, then at Shiro and Lance. Keith's blood had splattered all over their armor, especially Lance's. Her eyes tugged down. "We should clean up."

Shiro nodded, also looking at Lance. He slowly stood and picked up the blood-covered rock. "We should send this out the airlock." Lance nodded and climbed to his feet, picking up Keith's Blade uniform and knife, and his own helmet. Allura sent the stretcher away.

"And tell the others." Lance sighed. "They need to know." Allura nodded and began leading the way out of the infirmary. At the door, the three Paladins paused, looking at Keith one last time. Then, they continued. The Paladins first stopped at the airlock, gladly sending the rock into space. Despite the mass amount of drying blood on their uniforms, they decided to head to the shuttle bay and update everyone. Pidge and Hunk were with the rebels and Blades, all still recovering from battle. The two Paladins had known they wouldn't be able to handle seeing Keith. The bay immediately went silent when the three Paladins entered, everyone's wide eyes on the blood on their uniforms. Lance's hands tightened on Keith's belongings as Kolivan, Ilun, Coran, Ryner, Olia, and the other two Paladins approached them, fear in all of their steps.

Allura straightened, speaking slowly. "Keith is alive. But barely." She glanced at Lance. "Lance found his fighter in the side of a cliff in the mountains. Somehow he survived crashing nose first, but the rocks did a lot of damage to his body. We were able to get him in a healing pod, but I don't know how long it will take him to heal. It could take several quintants."

Lance numbly listened to her speak, his mind only focused on returning to Keith. Every dobosh that he was away from him killed him a little more. Pidge's eyes met Shiro's. "What exactly happened? All three of you are covered in blood." Her young face grew serious. Hunk tried not to look at their suits. He still hadn't gotten over the sight of blood, even after the Weblum.

Shiro glanced at Allura and Lance, knowing there was no way to sugarcoat the situation. He lowered his head. "When his ship crashed, Keith was impaled by a large rock." Pidge's large eyes narrow and she looked down.

Lance's eyebrows pulled together, the image of Keith in the chair with the large stone in his stomach burned into his mind. He noticed Kolivan's eyes on the uniform in his hands and he shifted his helmet between his side and elbow, removing the sheathed blade from the back. Then, Lance held out the uniform. "I take it you'll be able to fix this before he returns."

Kolivan slowly stepped forward, glancing down at the young Paladin and taking the folded uniform. He eyed the suit cautiously and unfolded the fabric, assessing the damage. His yellow eyes narrowed as the other noticed the size of the hole in the stomach. "Keith's suit will most likely need to be replaced. This one has seen too much of battle." Kolivan's gaze returned to Lance as he folded the uniform. "We can hold on to the blade too."

"With all due respect," Lance's face hardened, his hand on the blade tightening. "We all know that Keith would want it here with him." Shiro nodded in agreement, remembering all the trouble he went through to keep it in the first place.

"Very well." Kolivan stepped back, the uniform still in his hands. After a pause, he continued to speak, looking at Allura. "We should get the rebels back to Olkarion."

Allura nodded, looking at Ryner and Olia. "Indeed. We'll take everyone there. It's about time the Castle landed for a bit of time. Coran, can you land the Castle for me? Shiro, Lonce, and I need to clean up.

"Of course, Princess." Coran nodded and quickly walked away, heading to the bridge. Lance broke away a few ticks later, wanting to take off his suit and get into regular clothes so that he could return to Keith. Allura and Shiro loosely followed behind him. By the time they caught up with him in the uniform room, he had already changed out and put his suit in a sanitation chamber.

Allura slipped in as he walked out, but Shiro grabbed him and pulled him to the side. "Lance, are you okay? You definitely aren't yourself."

"You wouldn't be either if you had seen everything I had in that Galra fighter." It had been traumatizing. Lance slouched. Worry weighed him down more than anything, though. He was terrified that after everything he would still lose Keith. "I just need some time." He sighed and walked away, Keith's blade in his hand. Shiro's eyebrows pulled together and he watched Lance go. After several ticks, he slipped into the uniform room as Allura latched her cape on over her dress.

"I'm worried about Lance." Shiro spoke softly as he began removing the armor of his uniform.

"About what?" Allura sat down in a nearby chair, exhaustion slowly catching up with her. She watched him remove his armor, a slight blush warming her dark cheeks.

Shiro was too busy taking off his suit to notice. "I'm not quite sure what it is." He slipped into a back room to remove the rest of his suit and change into his regular clothes. When he was done, he returned and placed his armor into another sanitation chamber. "I've noticed he's been off lately. But its been especially noticeable today." He spoke, adjusting his collar. When he looked up, he found a small smile on Allura's face. "What?"

"Lonce has changed over time. There's nothing wrong with that." She stood again and approached him, adjusting his collar for him. "Today's just one of those days that brings out unusual emotions in everyone." She patted his shoulder when she was done, then walked out of the room. "Come on, Takashi. Let's get back to the others." A deep blush lit up Shiro's face and he forced himself to follow her.

Lance only made two small stops on his way back to the infirmary. He set the blade on Keith's bed before running into his room. There, he grabbed Keith's red jacket and his orange tablet. Stuffing both items into his jacket, Lance ran to the infirmary, unable to stay away any longer. His sea blue eyes focused on the healing pod in the dark room when he entered. His heart slowly sank in his chest and he walked up to the pod, placing his hands on it. The tears that he had been holding back for so long finally spilled over, soaking his tan face. Inside the pod, Keith remained still, more lifeless than he had been before. His black hair hung in his scratched up face, hiding the cuts that marked up his pale skin. The blood surrounding his mouth began to dissolve slowly. Lance closed his eyes as sobs shook his body. "Please come back to me, Keith."

Lance stood in front of Keith's pod for a long time, grief consuming him. Then, his hands slipped from the pod and he numbly approached the control panel, sinking to the ground in front of it. He leaned back against the panel and pulled out Keith's jacket and his orange tablet. With the jacket wadded up on his knees, Lance curled up, burying most of his face in it and breathing in Keith's scent. After several doboshes, he turned on the small tablet in his hands and flipped through pictures he had taken of Keith and them together. A sad smile crossed his face. When Lance had first started taking pictures, Keith hadn't smiled much, just like always. However, Lance found ways to make him smile, even if that meant doing something incredibly stupid. It was worth seeing a rare smile from his boyfriend. Lance held on to these photos, hoping and praying that soon he would be able to add more. He hoped he could make more memories and have more time with Keith. When he ran out of photos, he slipped the tablet back into his pocket and curled up tighter around Keith's jacket, his tearful eyes on Keith.


	2. Part Two

WARNING: CONTAINS SEASON 5 SPOILERS. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK. This fan fic contains mildly suggestive sexual themes and goes into detail about wounds and blood. It's probably ok for most people, but I figured i might as well put up a warning. It also has a gay ship in it, please no hating.

Part Two

Allura stood numbly at her workstation, overseeing the Castle's systems. It was time to leave to leave Olkarion and continue their duties. They had neglected them long enough. Coran helped her launch the ship in silence. The Castle rumbled and left the planet's atmosphere, plunging into space. Several doboshes later, Allura began to receive a transmission. Curious, she pulled it up on to the main screen. Emperor Lotor was on the other end of the line. "Lotor, to what do we owe the pleasure?" Surprise crossed her face and she approached the screen. While the coalition and the part of the Galra Empire under Lotor's control were allies, Allura had not heard from him in some time. He had become busy with tracking down Sendak, who was a continuous threat to his rule.

"I received word about Sendak's fleet on Olkarion from the Blade of Marmora today. It took them some time to contact me." Lotor sat up in his seat, his face growing serious. "I'm sorry to hear about Keith. Is he alright?"

Coran looked at Allura. Her face saddened. "I wish I could say for sure. He's still in a healing pod." She sighed.

"I see." Lotor's eyebrows pulled together. "Is there any way I can be of assistance?"

"Just focus on finding and capturing Sendak." Allura loosely crossed her arms. "He's the reason behind this whole mess to start with."

Lotor nodded. "As always." There was a sound to Lotor's left and he looked away from the screen. One of his commanders leaned in and whispered something in his ear. His face darkened and he dismissed the commander, looking back at the screen. "We just received a lead on him. I must go. Please send my regards to the Paladins and update me when Keith wakes up."

"Of course. Good hunting, Lotor." Allura nodded. Lotor gave her a small smile before ending the transmission. She turned to Coran. "At least he is having luck finding Sendak."

Coran patted her shoulder. "I'm sure we'll find something soon, Princess. We can begin looking more. He seems to keep sending his fleets to this quadrant." Coran paused. "At least looking for him with take our minds off Keith."

"Let's begin." Allura's face hardened and she returned to her works station, pulling up her screens. Coran smiled sadly and went back to his panel, beginning their search.

A varga later, a glint of light in the corner of her eye caused Allura to look up from her screens. Allura could see the ship clearly from the bridge before it was even within range. She recognized the flying style and she gloomily turned to Coran, who still stood at his control panel. "Coran, when that ship is closer, can you open the shuttle bay door?" She paused, meeting his gaze. The older man nodded. "I'm going down to greet her." With that, Allura sighed and departed from the bridge, moving as quickly as she could to the shuttle bay. She managed to be the small ship to the shuttle bay and she tried to compose herself, despite the fear that was welling up in her. The familiar Blade of Marmora vessel docked in the bay, quickly powering down. The door slid open and the Galra woman rushed out, her eyes settling on Allura.

"Allura." Her eyes widened and she ran up to the younger woman, placing her hands on her shoulders. Allura looked up at her, her own composure fracturing. "I was out of range of communications for quintants. When I got back, Kolivan told me what happened. Please tell me he's here." Allura had never seen her react this way to anything. "Please, take me to my son."

"I will, Krolia." Allura stepped back and gestured for the woman to come with her. Krolia just wanted to run. Kolivan didn't tell her how Keith was doing now. She wanted to know that he was okay.

When the pair made it to the infirmary, Allura gestured to the door. Krolia's eyes widened and bolted for it, running inside. Her gaze settled on the active healing pod and her heart broke. "Keith." She sucked in a sharp breath and sprinted the rest of the way, pressing her hands against the green barrier. "No…" Allura slowly followed her in, knowing she had a lot to catch up on. Lance stood from the ground in front of the control panel, his eyebrows raising. He had only met Keith's mother once and even then it was with everyone else. Lance hadn't expected her to come. Allura stopped a few feet away from Lance, sadly crossing her arms and closing her eyes. The pain on Krolia's face was too much to bear. "Kolivan only told me that he had been in an accident and that he was in the Castle. He didn't tell me how bad it was. How long has he been in here?" Her purple eyes met Lance's when she saw that Allura's were closed.

"Two quintants." Lance forced himself to speak, his voice cracking from not being used for a while. Krolia looked over Lance, recognizing something about him. Her dark eyebrows pulled together, and through the panic, her face grew serious. Upon seeing the expression, Lance averted his gaze. He knew that look all too well. She and Keith had very similar expressions.

Krolia stared back at the pod, watching her lifeless son. Tears began to fill her eyes and she closed them. "I should have been there."

"Krolia," Allura finally opened her eyes and approached her. "There was no way you could have stopped this. What happened on Olkarion was out of everyone's hands." She placed her hand on the woman's shoulder. "You were already on a mission and this one came up in a matter of hours."

"And I nearly lost my only son because of it." Krolia's hands slipped from the pod. "I just got him back after more than 12 decaphoebs. I can't lose him."

Allura looked at Lance. "You won't." She removed her hand from Krolia's shoulder.

"Princess," Coran appeared in a transmission over the control panel, causing Lance to jump. "I might have a lead on Sendak."

"I'll be right there, Coran." Allura responded. Coran nodded and ended the transmission. Allura turned to Krolia. "Please make yourself at home on the Castle. You are welcome to stay here as long as you like. Just let me know if you need anything."

"Thank you, Princess." Krolia nodded, looking down. Allura patted Lance's shoulder before leaving. The young man shifted uncomfortably once she was gone, setting Keith's red jacket on the control panel. "So, you're Lance." She spoke, still looking at ground.

Lance's head shot up and he took a couple of steps closer to her. "I… I'm surprised you know who I am. We've only met once and that was a while ago."

Krolia turned around and looked at him. There was a hint of happiness on her sad face. "Maybe so, but my son talks about you all the time." Lance's cheeks burned bright red. Krolia closed the gap between them, wrapping her arms around him. "I am glad he has you here." Lance straightened in her arms, surprise crossing his face. After a few ticks, he hugged her back.

"Thank you, Mrs. Kogane." Lance sighed, slowly pulling away from her.

"Please, call me Krolia." She smiled, stepping back. The corners of his lips pulled up and they both looked at Keith, hoping he would heal quickly.

"Why is there a Blade of Marmora shuttle in the bay?" Hunk turned to the Alteans, pulling their attention away from their screens.

Shiro straightened and his eyebrows pulled together. "Wait, what?"

Allura looked at the other Paladins wearily, exhaustion clear on her face. "Because Krolia is here."

"Keith's mother is here and you didn't tell us?" Shiro climbed out of his chair.

"She arrived last night." Allura sighed and powered down her screens, sitting on the edge of her station. She tiredly rubbed her eyes before meeting Shiro's gaze. "She was out of communication range when Keith was injured, so she didn't receive word until she arrived at the Blade of Marmora headquarters. It appears Kolivan was quite vague when it came to telling her what happened. Krolia didn't know what shape Keith was in. She arrived filled with terror. I didn't tell you all because I knew she needed time to be with him alone." She paused. "If you wish to see her now, I'm sure she's still in the infirmary."

Pidge frowned, looking up from her screen. "It may be best to just leave her be. Krolia spends a lot of her time alone. Having too many people around could overwhelm her more." Hunk nodded in agreement.

"You guys can stay, but I'm going." Shiro left the bridge, making his way to the infirmary. It only took him a few doboshes to get there but it felt like long enough. When he arrived, he found Krolia standing in front of the healing pod, her purple eyes watching over her son. Lance sat silently in front of the control panel, his eyes closed. "Krolia." Shiro quietly walked over.

She looked up at him, her face softening slightly. "Oh, hello Shiro." She unfolded her crossed arms.

"How are you holding up?" He asked as he gave her a brief hug. He knew she needed it.

"As well as a worried mother can be." Krolia's eyes settled back on Keith. He looked so frail in there. She wanted nothing more than for him to wake up again. "How much longer is he going to be in there? It's been three quintants."

Shiro looked at Keith as well. "To be honest, I'm not sure. This is the longest we've ever had someone in a healing pod. Normally the pod opens when they're completely healed." His eyes returned to her face, seeing the deep bags under her eyes. She must not have slept at all last night.

"So he really is in bad shape." Her eyes narrowed. The scratches on his face and hands were beginning to heal. Shiro nodded slowly and placed a hand on her back, trying to reassure her.

They were both silent for some time, then Krolia received a transmission. She straightened and pulled up the screen, her eyebrows pulling together. Kolivan was on the other end of the line. Shiro shifted at her side, crossing his arms. "Krolia, I understand that now is not a great time, but I need you to return to base." Her face darkened. "Emperor Lotor requires our assistance. He has reason to believe Sendak has returned to the Javeeno System, likely to mine for crystals on Balmera X-95-Vox. Lotor has asked us to confirm these rumors."

"I will leave immediately." The woman nodded, ending the transmission.

"Is it a good idea for you to be going on this mission?" Shiro turned to face her, his eyebrows pulling together. "Considering what's going on with Keith?"

Krolia's face remained serious. "My son may be injured, but we are still at war. I have responsibilities within the Blade of Marmora." She began walking towards the door, passing Lance; who had quietly watched the whole ordeal. "Sendak is the reason Keith is in that pod. The least I can do is help take him out."

Shiro followed her out, eventually leading her to the shuttle bay. "I understand. But please be careful out there. Only a clear mind is going to take out Sendak."

"Thank you for the advice, Shiro." She spoke as they reached her ship. She paused at the door and turned to face him. "Please take care of Keith. Let me know if his condition changes."

"I will." He nodded, stepping back. Krolia sighed and opened the door to her shuttle, firing it up. Shiro watched her depart from the Castle, worry filling him. The last thing he wanted was to lose both Keith and his mother. After a dobosh, he decided to return to the bridge and tell Allura about the situation. Voltron needed to be ready to backup Lotor and the Blades.

"Has anyone seen Lance?" Pidge sat in the lounge, her brown eyes looking over her friends. Hunk was eating beside her and Allura and Coran were across from them, enjoying the silence. Shiro glanced over his shoulder at her, his eyebrows pulling together. "It's not like him to just disappear." Hunk set down his bowl of food goo and glanced at the others.

Shiro walked over to the others and slipped down onto the couch between the two pairs. "It's because Lance isn't himself." He loosely crossed his arms and met Pidge's gaze. "It seems that rescuing Keith traumatized him. Whatever happened inside that Galra fighter, whatever he saw, terrified him. He needs time to heal as well."

"How do you know that?" Hunk's eyebrows pulled together as he glanced down, sad for his friend. They had always been close at the Garrison, but they hadn't been recently. Perhaps it was time to fix that.

"He told me." Shiro looked at Coran and Allura. The two Alteans were visibly upset. "Is there any update on Keith?" They had all grown anxious. Too much time had passed.

Allura slowly shook her head, distressed. "I'm afraid not." She paused. "Perhaps its time I go check again." She quietly dismissed herself and left the room, heading for the infirmary, where she knew they both would be. The other watched her go.

"I don't like this one bit." Coran muttered, slouching in his seat. "Keith should have been out of that pod by now." Shiro nodded silently, leaning over.

"Why is everyone so worried? I mean, Keith is in a healing pod." Hunk sat up, glancing between Coran and Shiro. "He'll be fine, right?"

Coran exchanged a glance with Pidge and Shiro. "I wish I could say that were true." Shiro closed his eyes as Coran spoke. He had feared this. "But the longer he's in there, the less likely he is going to ever come out." Hunk frowned, beginning to understand. Pidge silently patted his shoulder.

The sound of a door opening caused Lance to jump where he sat. He scrambled to hide Keith's jacket under his own. "Lonce, are you still in here?" Allura's voice echoed from across the room.

"Oh, it's you." Lance sighed, relaxing and pulling out the jacket again.

Allura's lips pulled down and she walked up to Lance, sitting down beside him. "How long are you going to sit around in here?" She looked at him sadly. "It's been three quintants. You need to eat. And shower."

Lance's sad eyes met hers and a tear rolled down his cheek. "Allura… I… I can't leave."

"Lonce, I know how you feel. I know how much you're hurting." She shifted to face him. Her face softened when she remembered something Shiro once told her. "But you have to step away for awhile. Keith wouldn't want you to fall ill because you were looking out for him. You need to take care of yourself."

"I know…" Lance lowered his head and sighed. She was right. He had been a wreck from the moment that he had noticed Keith's absence in that shuttle bay and he had only gotten worse. He couldn't sleep or eat. He barely felt like moving. He could only wait anxiously for Keith to wake up again. The quintants that had passed were more like the few extra seconds that one's breath was held before surfacing from water. Lance was waiting to breathe again. "Allura?"

"Yes?" She looked at him, her eyebrows pulling up.

His eyes met hers again. "I'm glad you know about us." A slight smile made its way on to his lips. "It's nice to have someone know and understand what's going on. I would've gone crazy if I had to act like I didn't care as much."

"You shouldn't have to act around any of us, Lonce." Allura wrapped her arms around her knees, glancing at Keith. Another twinge of sadness filled her mind.

Lance continued watching her. There was something he had to get off his chest. "To be honest, Allura, I've been acting for a long time. I just never realized it. At least not until I knew I liked Keith." He leaned back against the control panel. Allura glanced at him, a confused look on her face. He chuckled under his breath when he saw her expression. "To the outside world, I was as straight as a post. But deep down I knew that wasn't the case. Instead of accepting it, I tried to bury it by flirting with every girl I saw. Who knew Lance McClain was bisexual?"

"Forgive me for asking, but what does 'bisexual' mean? I'm still adjusting to most of Earth's words and phrases." Allura shrugged.

"Oh," Lance cleared his throat. "basically it just means I like both genders."

"Oh!" Her face lit up and she suppressed a laugh. "You'll be surprised to find that is quite common out here in space. Blaytz, the original blue paladin, was bisexual. You should have seen him flirt with all of Zarkon's servants back in the day." Her smile slowly faded at the mention of Zarkon. Oh how everything had changed.

Lance's eyebrows pulled together. "Huh." He paused before putting on a sincere face. "Anyways, what I'm trying to say is: I'm sorry for all the flirting I did with you. Most of it was just me being ridiculous."

Allura's smile returned, this time bigger. "Does this mean all the flirting is finally over?"

"Yes." Lance laughed, his eyes looking at Keith in the healing pod. "Keith just about killed me every time I did it, but I was just trying to act normal until we were ready to come out to everyone." Allura nodded, understanding. A small weight had been lifted off her shoulders. After several ticks, Lance looked back at her. "Speaking of flirting, when are you going to do something about Shiro?"

"Shiro? What?" Allura straightened, a subtle blushed warming her dark cheeks.

Lance rolled his eyes. "I may have been flirting with you just for the fun of it, but girl, you've got it bad." A smile lit up his exhausted face. "Just ask him out already."

Allura's face reddened. "Is it really that obvious?" Lance nodded. She sighed. "I guess you're right. I do like Shiro. I'm just… afraid. I've already lost so much in my life."

"You shouldn't be afraid of loving Shiro." Lance's eyebrows pulled up and he slowly stood, walking toward Keith's pod. "Besides, we aren't fighting this war because of what we hate." He placed a hand on the pod before looking back at her. "We're fighting because we're protecting what we love." Allura nodded, a smile on her face, and she stood as well. After a dobosh, Lance started towards the door. "Allura, can you stay here for a few doboshes?"

"Where are you going?" She gave him a puzzled look.

"To take care of myself so Keith has someone to come back to." He flashed a grin before leaving. Allura smiled and watched him go, then she turned and approached the healing pod.

Allura's blue eyes glanced over Keith. The scratches on his face were finally gone. "Keith, I don't know if you can hear me, but you have to pull through this. I know you once believed that you weren't good enough to be the leader of Voltron, that you weren't good enough to be a Paladin. But you are and everyone here needs you, loves you. You will always be a Paladin here but you can't give up. Don't give up on us. Don't give up on Lance. I can see how much he loves you. I saw how much you love him. Keith, you need to fight. Come back to him. Come home." She pressed her hand on the pod and closed her eyes for several ticks. Then she stepped away and approached the control panel, pulling up Keith's scans and vitals. She had told the others she was going to check on Keith and she was going to do that. There had to be answers here.

"Hey, I'm back." Lance strolled in, slowly approaching Allura.

Allura forced herself to look up from the screens on the control panel. "Oh, you look better!" She gave him a small smile.

"It's surprising what a shower and a juice pack can do to revive someone." He nodded, standing beside her. After a tick, he glanced over at Keith. Allura immediately looked back at the screens, her eyebrows pulling together. A knot formed in Lance's stomach when he looked back at her. "Allura, I've seen that look before. What's wrong?" He shifted closer and glanced at the screens, not sure what he was looking for.

"I'm not sure ye-" She started when a scan pulled up on the screen. She froze and stared at it. "This can't be right."

"Allura, what is it?" Lance crossed his arms and looked closer, noticing the scan on the screen was of Keith. It looked like one they had taken when they first put him in the pod.

Instead of answering him, she swiped her hand through the air and opened a screen in front of them. It flickered before the other Paladins and Coran appeared on it. They were all in the lounge. Bewilderment crossed Lance's face and looked at Allura, whose face had hardened. What wasn't she telling him? "Everyone, I need you to come down to the infirmary, now."

Shiro walked closer to the screen. "Is Keith awake?"

"No, but I need to talk to you all." She replied. Shiro only nodded as the others stood up from the couches.

"We'll be right there, Princess." Coran spoke and began walking away from the screen.

Allura dismissed it and turned to face Lance, who continued to stare at her. "Something is terribly wrong." She finally answered. Lance's annoyed expression dropped and fear replaced it as he glanced at Keith. Aside from the fact that he was still in the chamber, nothing seemed wrong. Allura began pulling up different things, different images, on the screen.

The others arrived before she said anything else. "Allura, we're all here. What's going on?" Shiro quickly approached them, his eyes wearily glancing at Keith.

"I've been trying to ask her that for two doboshes." Lance crossed his arms again and muttered. Pidge and Hunk watched silently, not sure what to expect. Coran slipped around Shiro, curiously glancing at the screen behind Allura.

Allura sighed and glanced at everyone. "As we all know, Keith has been in the pod for over three quintants. This is a long time for anyone to be in it. So I decided to take a closer look and now I know why he's still in there. But first, I need to show you something." She turned to face the control panel, dragging two images out over it. "These scans are of Lance after Sendak's drone blew up the crystal on Arus. The one on the left was taken right after we put him in and the one on the right was taken a few doboshes before he woke up. These were taken about a quintain apart, but you can see how quickly Lance healed from his wounds." Lance glanced curiously at them, taking note of how many wounds he had had. The scans looked more like thermal images, showing were the hottest and coldest parts of the body were, however, they also used a similar concept to keep track of wounds. The wounds in Lance's scans were red. Allura pulled up two more images. "These scans are of Shiro after Haggar attacked him. Once again, these are taken a quintant apart." Like Lance's scans, Shiro's wound was also red.

"What is your point, Allura?" Pidge shifted where she stood, still not sure where this was going.

Allura glanced at her before pulling up one image. "This is Keith after we put him in the pod." The wound on his shoulder from the blast was red as well. However, the massive injury in his stomach was white. Coran stiffened at Allura's side, suddenly knowing. Allura hesitated putting up the second image. "And this is Keith, as of four doboshes ago." She released the image. Lance's eyes widened. The wound on Keith's shoulder had become a darker red, but the one on his stomach had barely faded to light pink. The darker a wound was, the closer it was to being healed. "Keith, for some reason, is barely healing. I suspect it may have to do with the sheer damage that he took and the abilities of these pods. When the Alteans created the healing pods, they were not made for injuries like these. At this rate, it could take several movements, maybe even a phoeb for Keith to heal."

"That's if he does heal." Hunk spoke quietly. His eyes were on Coran. Lance looked between the two.

"What do you mean?" He spoke, confused. Allura closed her eyes.

Coran sighed. "The longer a pod runs, the less effective it is at healing. Eventually, it stops to recover. Keith may not have that long."

"So, you're telling us, what? That Keith could die anyways? After everything we've done to save him?" Shiro glanced at Lance, who had grown incredibly quiet.

A tear streaked down Allura's face. "Yes."

Lance's face hardened and he staggered back several steps. He felt like he was going to puke. He couldn't breathe as his throat swelled. His sea blue eyes settled on Keith and his heart broke. "I… I can't." With that, he quickly slipped out of the room, fighting.

"Lance-" Shiro called after him, but it was too late. The young man took off down the hall, running to the only place he knew he could let go. Once he was sitting inside Red's head, he collapsed to his knees and let out a scream, pulling at his hair. Just when he was starting to feel okay again. Lance's chest tightened and he struggled to breathe. His tears spilled on to floor. As Lance fought with himself, his mighty lion laid down in its hangar, feeling the strain on its Paladins, both past and current. It curled up on itself and powered down, giving Lance the comfort of darkness.

Allura sat silently in the infirmary, stifling tears. She enjoyed the quiet, away from Hunk, Pidge, and Coran's chatter. They all had their own ways of dealing with everything that had happened. Those three took to humor. Shiro spent his time planning ahead, preparing for the eminent fights with Sendak. No one had heard or seen from Lance in several quintants, but they knew he was somewhere on the ship. Allura was lost in all of this. She had tried everyone else's way of adjusting, but nothing worked. She planned with Shiro and joked around with the other three, but she felt more hollow afterward. She had searched for Lance, but hadn't found him anywhere. He might as well have disappeared. Earlier that quintant, Kolivan and Krolia had contacted Allura, telling her that their mission in the Javeeno System didn't lead them anywhere. There was no sign of Sendak. When the pair asked for an update on Keith, it broke Allura to inform them that Keith had not yet awoken. Following the transmission, she found herself wandering the halls until she came to the infirmary. "Keith, I don't know what to do." She wrapped her arms around her knees and sighed. "We're losing you and Lonce. This team is falling apart. Shiro's buried himself in preparing. The others are struggling to take anything seriously. I feel so lost and unsure." Allura slowly climbed to her feet and stood in front of Keith's pod. She bowed her head and closed her eyes.

Ticks later, the door to the infirmary opened and Shiro stepped inside. His eyes settled on Allura and he slowly approached her. "How long have you been in here?"

"Maybe half a varga." She shrugged, wiping the tears from her face. "I hate just standing here." She slowly looked at him. "I hate worrying about Keith and-"

"Lance." Shiro loosely crossed his arms before looking at the ground. "You've been talking about him a lot lately. How we need to find him. How much you're concerned for him."

Allura's eyebrows pulled together and she turned to face him. "What are you getting at, Shiro?"

"You like him, don't you?" His eyes met hers. His face remained serious. "His good looks and pick up lines finally got you. I completely understand. Don't let me stand in the way."

Allura fought back a laugh. "Shiro, it's not like that at all. Lonce is just a friend and one that needs our help and support. He's hurting more than anyone can imagine." She paused, glancing at Keith. "And part of that is my fault." She looked back at the man before her and shifted closer, placing a hand on his arm. "I'm not in love with Lonce. I'm in love with you, Shiro. I always have been. I just never had the courage to tell you."

Shiro's face softened and he pulled her into a tight embrace. Allura smiled and wrapped her arms around him. "As have I, Princess." He whispered in her ear.

Allura slowly pulled away from him, taking his hands in hers. "I'm sorry I made it look like I had feelings for Lonce. Everything about this situation has me walking in circles. I can barely keep my head straight."

"I understand." Shiro nodded, glancing at Keith. Allura looked with him. "You said Lance needs our help and support. Is there something more going on that the rest of us know about?" His eyebrows pulled together slightly.

"I.." Allura tore her eyes from Keith and glanced down. "I promised I wouldn't tell. It's not my secret to tell, especially to everyone else. I wasn't even supposed to know." Her hands slipped from his and she slowly approached the control panel. It was time she checked Keith's vitals again anyway.

Shiro noticed her choice of action and he stared at Keith as Allura pulled up his scans. "It has to do with Keith, doesn't it?"

Allura answered hesitantly. "Yes." She looked closely at the scans. His shoulder injury had faded to blue and his large wound had become pink. They were both still far from being healed.

"Are they… together?" He walked up to her. Her blue eyes met his and she slowly nodded. Shiro's eyebrows pulled up. "That's surprising for Lance. Wait, how did you find out?"

Allura's cheeks blushed bright red. "I found Keith in Lonce's room that morning." She paused, straightening. "You may have figured it out, but please don't tell anyone, Shiro. I promised Keith I wouldn't."

Shiro nodded and looked down at the control panel. "Are those his scans from today?" Allura smirked sadly. "Quiznak. He's been in there for a movement and a half. How are his wounds still this bad?" She leaned over the control panel and shrugged, helplessly staring at his vitals. After a few ticks, she closed her eyes. Shiro placed a hand on her shoulder, his heart sinking a little more. A flash of light grabbed his attention and he glanced up. He drew in a deep breath and quickly crossed the room. "Allura."

"Oh no." She opened her eyes and straightened. In front of Shiro, the healing pod Keith was in began to flicker, it's bright green light turning on and off. "The pod is shutting down!" Her hands shot for the controls on the panel, trying to gain control of the pod. "I'm going to try to reverse the shutdown and keep it running."

Shiro's eyes widened as he watched the pod flicker more, each time the darkness lasting a little bit longer. "Hurry, it's not going to last much longer." Allura worked as quickly as she could, but a hushed alarm went off.

"It's not working!" She huffed, still trying. "I can't stop it."

"Can we transfer him to another pod?" Shiro anxiously glanced at her. Allura swiped the scans to the side and began working on activating a second pod. The healing pod flickered, then shorted out, it's green barrier disappearing. Inside the base, Keith's body collapsed, slumping against the inner wall. "Keith!" Shiro lunged forward, lifting Keith out of the shutdown pod. He laid the dying boy on the ground, immediately placing pressure over the wound on his stomach. It had already begun to bleed through the uniform. "Allura!?"

"It's almost up. Just a few more ticks." Her hands kept working on the control panel.

"Come on. Stay with us, Keith." Shiro grunted as blood continued to seep across the green section of the uniform. He pressed harder with his hands. Keith's breathing grew ragged. "Come on!"

"It's up, getting him in!" Allura prepared to start the freezing process as Shiro scrambled to get Keith into the new pod. As soon as he stepped back, she pressed the button, locking the pod. Within ticks, Keith's body straightened and the freezing process began. Shiro collapsed to the ground, fear and relief consuming him. Allura ran up to him, a tear streaking down her face. Her arms wrapped around him. "Hey, he's okay now." She tried to comfort him. "He'll be okay in the pod."

Shiro shook in her arms, trying to breathe. "Until this one fails, too." He buried his face in the crook of her neck. Her arms tightened around him. The pain would only continue. They couldn't possibly know if he'd survive this.

"We need to find Lonce." Allura whispered after a dobosh. "He needs to know."

"'We' can't find him. One of us needs to stay here in case something happens to the pod or Keith." Shiro slowly looked at her.

Allura nodded. "Go find Lonce. I'll stay here and make sure everything's in order."

He nodded as well and shakily stood before running out of the infirmary, beginning his search. Although he knew Lance wouldn't be there, he checked his room, the lounge, bridge, kitchen, and training deck. When he didn't find him in any of those rooms, he headed down to the lions' hangars. "Where are you, Lance?" Shiro wearily sighed when he reached the entrance. In the hangar, Shiro could see the red lion and he ran towards it. The great cat laid on the ground lifelessly. "Lance?!" Shiro shouted, approaching the red lion. "Lance, are you in there?" There was no answer, but Red's eyes lit up for a fraction of a second. The lion's particle barrier remained down. It was asking for help. Shiro's eyebrows pulled together and he pressed his hand on the lion's mouth. It responded by opening, allowing him inside. "Thank you, Red." Shiro sighed and slipped in, making his way to the cockpit. "Lance, I know you're in here." He spoke quietly. "Just talk to me, buddy." He could barely see inside the great lion's dark head. Eventually, he used his Galra hand to light up the space. Instead of sitting in the chair, Lance was curled up against the side of the lion's head.

"Why are you here, Shiro?" The boy barely whispered when Shiro's hand lit up the space. His eyes were red and puffy.

"Keith needs you." Shiro's hand returned to normal, leaving the two in darkness.

Lance stiffened, looking up at the man. "Wait, is he awake?"

Shiro shook his head and knelt down beside him. "No, he's not. But his pod shut down and Allura and I barely got him into another one. He needs you there by his side, Lance."

"Why would Keith need me, of all people, to be there?" Lance sunk back against the wall, trying to put on his act. It was barely convincing. He was too weak and too tired to care or try.

"Because he loves you." Shiro sat down as his eyes adjusted to the darkness. "And you love him. You don't have to act around me, Lance."

Lance looked at him. His eyes were too dry to shed another tear. "Did Allura tell you?"

"No, I figured it out." Shiro sighed. "You should have just told us. We could have helped you-"

"What's there to help, Shiro? Either Keith gets better or he doesn't." Lance sat back numbly, his body shaking.

"Believe it or not, Keith is slowly healing. I can't say the same for you." Shiro spoke quietly. "When was the last time you ate?"

Lance tried to think, but didn't have a sense of time. He hadn't kept track of the days that had passed. All he knew was that it felt like a decaphoeb had gone by. "I don't know. The day Keith got hurt."

"Lance, its been seven quintants since you last ate." Shiro climbed to his knees. "You need to eat."

"I don't feel like eating." The boy replied, closing his eyes. "I don't feel like doing anything." He knew Shiro was right. He was weak from not eating and he had barely gotten any sleep. But the pain, the depression, had taken over. He knew he was going to lose Keith and he didn't want to be around when that happened. He wanted this all to end.

Shiro's face hardened. "Why are you doing this? Keith is getting better but there's no point if we aren't around when he finally wakes up. You need to be there." His hands wrapped Lance's wrists and he pulled both of them to their feet.

"Shiro! What are you doing?" Lance stumbled forward, barely able to stand on his feet. Shiro caught him and held him steady. "I just... Wha... Shiro, what is all over your hands?" Lance paused. Shiro bowed his head. In that dobosh, the Red lion powered on and sat up. The cockpit lit up and Lance stared at Shiro's hands, seeing the blood that covered them. Shiro looked back at him, his weary eyes taking in the deep bags under Lance's eyes. The boy even looked like he had lost some weight. Lance then looked at his own hands, staring at the blood that had transferred to his skin. His tan hands closed into loose fists. "Keith? What happened?"

"Come with me, Lance." Shiro lowered his own hands and stepped away, leading the way out of the lion. Lance hesitantly followed him, barely able to walk in a straight line. The boy didn't make it far from the lion before his legs gave out. He was too weak from lack of food. "I've got you, buddy." Shiro helped him back to his feet, supporting him as they continued walking. Doboshes later, they both made it to the infirmary.

"Lonce, are you okay?" Allura walked up to them when they entered the room.

Shiro continued to keep him steady. "He hasn't eaten in seven quintants." Allura's eyes widened and she nodded in understanding.

Lance slipped out from beneath Shiro's arm and walked as best as he could to the new pod, his eyes on Keith. His heart sank at the sight of the blood stain on Keith's stomach. Shiro and Allura watched him silently, their hearts breaking with his. He placed a hand on the pod as he looked over Keith's face. Keith's eyebrows jerked and parts of his face twitched now. Lance knew they were involuntary movements, but he couldn't help but feel like Keith was in pain. He slowly looked back at Shiro and Allura. "What happened?"

"We were in here looking at his scans when the healing pod began to short out." Allura started, loosely crossing her arms. "I did everything I could to keep it up and running, but it powered down. While I tried getting another pod ready, Keith's body resumed what it had been doing before we put him in the pod. He began to bleed out. Shiro and I got him in this one before he lost too much more blood." She glanced at Shiro, who slowly nodded.

Lance sighed and sank onto the first step of the staircase around the control panel, sitting. He closed his eyes. "I should have just stayed in here." The other two Paladins sat on either side of him, consoling him. "I should have been here for him."

"You're here now, Lance. That's what matters." Shiro spoke quietly. "Now you just need to take care of yourself."

Allura nodded. "Let's start with getting you some food and a lot more water."

"In case you haven't noticed, I can barely walk." Lance glanced over himself.

"I'll get it from the kitchen and bring it back here. Just focus on resting." Shiro slowly stood up, walking across the room.

"Thanks, Shiro." Lance muttered. "For everything." The corners of Shiro's mouth pulled up slightly and he left the room.

Allura looked at Lance, disturbed by his appearance. "Where have you been for the past four quintants? You look awful."

"I was in Red." He slumped forward, resting his head and arms on his knees. "It was quiet and dark in the hangar."

"Lonce…" Allura sighed sadly and patted his back gently. "I'm sorry I threw that curveball at you. I should have told you first. I just… didn't know what to do." Lance looked thoughtfully at her before slowly nodding. He didn't really know what to say to her. After a few ticks, he turned and watched Keith. His heart ached but he kept hoping that Keith would open his eyes and come back to him.


	3. Part Three

WARNING: CONTAINS SEASON 5 SPOILERS. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK. This fan fic contains mildly suggestive sexual themes and goes into detail about wounds and blood. It's probably ok for most people, but I figured i might as well put up a warning. It also has a gay ship in it, please no hating.

Paladin Down - Part Three

"So, uh, what changed?" Shiro cleared his throat, looking at Lance.

Lance raised an eyebrow and glanced at him, confusion crossing his face. "I beg your pardon?" He set his food goo bowl down. His energy was beginning to return.

Shiro struggled to find the right words. "I, uh… I mean you and Keith. You just seemed so… straight." He winced after he spoke.

"Oh." Lance tried not to laugh, but snorted under his breath anyway. Allura shifted awkwardly near the control panel. "Well, I wouldn't say anything necessarily changed. I've always been this way. I just didn't realize it." This time, confusion crossed Shiro's face as he tried to understand. This was all very new to him.

"What he means to say is that he overcompensated by flirting with every woman in sight." Allura coughed.

Lance shrugged, raising his eyebrows in agreement. After a few ticks, he sighed and leaned forward, resting his face in his hands. "That won't be happening anymore. I'm done." He stared at the floor for a long time. Shiro and Allura exchanged glances, sadness tugging at their features.

Shiro quietly approached Allura and motioned towards the door. "We'll give you some time to recover." He turned to Lance, who looked up and nodded slowly. Allura gave him a small smile and stepped away from the control panel, beginning to walk out of the room. Lance stared back down at the ground as Shiro followed her out.

"Lonce?" Allura paused in the doorway. His eyes met hers and he silently raised an eyebrow. "Thank you for the advice you gave me last movement." A confused look crossed Shiro's face as she looked up and smiled at him.

Lance watched them carefully, a faint smile forming on his lips when he realized what she meant. "You're welcome." He was glad he was able to help them come together, he just didn't feel like celebrating it. After a few ticks, the pair left the room. They both needed to discuss their new relationship. Lance slouched when the door closed behind them, looking at his boyfriend. At least the blood on his uniform was beginning to dissipate into the pod.

A bright red light flashed over Lance's closed eyes and an alarm pulled him from sleep. He jolted up from against the healing pod and met Hunk's gaze. He had a similar expression on his face. "Paladins, something has locked on to the Castle!" Coran's voice came from the speakers in the room. "Get to your lions. I fear it may be a Galra fleet."

Hunk scrambled to his feet and ran to the door. "Come on. We gotta go!" Lance grumbled and shakily stood up. His energy hadn't quite returned yet. He looked at Keith before reluctantly following his friend into the hallway. He knew the day would come when they had to fight again. He had just hoped it wouldn't have been so soon. The pair quickly changed into their uniforms before taking their separate ways to their lions. Hunk and the others reached their lions and flew outside the Castle by the time Lance arrived at Red's hangar.

"Oh quiznak. It's three Galra fleets." Hunk's voice came through Lance's communication system. Lance's eyebrows pulled together and he ran as best he could into Red's cockpit, firing up the lion. He knew he had to help his friends.

"Where's Lance? The four of us and the Castle can't take on all of this by ourselves." He heard Pidge's voice as the red lion shot out of the hangar, quickly catching up with the other four.

"You won't have to. Sorry, I'm late guys." Lance gripped on to the controls, blasting at several Galra fighters.

"Lance, it's good to have you here." Shiro responded. Lance could almost hear the smile in his voice. It probably surprised the others that he was actually there. He had disappeared for quite some time. "Team, it's time to form Voltron!"

"Yeah!" The five Paladins shouted. They flew into formation and pulled together as quickly as they could, knowing Coran and the Castle would not be able to hold off the Galra fleets for long. The giant weapon shot forward, engaging in battle.

"Form shoulder cannon!" Shiro shouted when they were closer. Hunk whipped out his Bayard, slamming it into its dock. "Fire on the fighters." The massive canon appeared on Voltron's right shoulder, firing after a long tick. In the distance, dozens of Galra fighters blew up as the blue beams struck them down. "Great shot! Prepare to fire again!" Voltron straightened as several dozen more fighters flew towards him, opening fire. "Ready. Aim. Fire!" The cannon shot again, gunning down the fighters.

The Paladins let out a small cheer just before Coran's voice came through. "Paladins, I'm taking heavy fire from the cruisers. I need your help! The particle barrier won't hold much longer!"

"I really need to figure out how to upgrade the particle barrier. It's so useless!" Pidge grumbled as Shiro led Voltron forward. Allura frowned at her comment.

"Form sword!" Shiro shouted and Hunk removed his bayard. Lance's face hardened and he slid his red bayard in. The large sword formed in the red lion's mouth just as they reached the first cruiser. Lance adjusted the direction of the red lion, driving the blade into the ship's side. The metal of the Galra cruiser began to creak and groan before a bright light consumed it, leaving it in flames. "Two more to go!"

"Watch out! We have an ion cannon trained on us!" Allura shouted over all the commotion.

Shiro looked ahead, seeing the bright ball of light growing in front of the next closest Galra cruiser. "Pidge, form shield!" Her eyes widened and she whipped out her green bayard, slamming it into the dock. The wings on the black Lion shot forward, forming the large shield in front of Voltron, just barely blocking the purple beam trained on them. The five Paladins grunted as the blast slowly forced them back. "Engage thrusters! We need to take out this cruiser!" Hunk and Allura began applying them, propelling Voltron forward.

"Gotcha." Lance aimed the sword at the hull when they were close enough, tearing through the large ship.

"Good work, Lance." Shiro grinned as the ship exploded. A small smile tugged its way on to Lance's lips, then he focused on the final ship, readying the sword. The Galra cruiser began to turn and charge its ion canon, but Voltron was too fast for it. The final ship burst into flames just like the others. In the space around them, the Galra fighters shut down, useless without their commanding ships. "Great job, everybody. That's another victory for the rebels. Let's split up and get back to the Castle."

The five lions began their return to their hangars. Pidge and Hunk gleefully raced back, Pidge easily winning with her smaller lion. Shiro, Allura, and Lance returned at a looser pace. Lance slouched back into his seat, watching the others in exhaustion. The battle had used up the energy he had just gotten back. When they were closer, one of his hands slipped from the control and Red skimmed Blue's side. Both Paladins quickly gained control of their lions. "Whoa, Lonce, are you okay?" Allura glanced out her window, looking at the red lion. Ahead of them, the black lion stopped, glancing back.

The red lion slowly straightened as Lance forced himself to sit up in his seat. "I… Yeah, sorry about that Allura." He paused, moving the lion forward again. "Let's just get back." He was too drained to be sitting out in space. Allura and Shiro worriedly watched him go before catching up, guiding his lion into his hangar. When they were sure he was in, they made their way to their own.

Lance was almost to his landing pad when his vision blurred and he lost control of the lion. Red overshot and collided with one of the walls, collapsing to the ground. The collision sent a tremor through the hangar, causing the lights to flicker for a few ticks. The red lion let out a roar before powering down. "What was that?" Pidge ran to the center of the hangar, looking around. Hunk quickly met up with her. They both looked down the other hallways, trying to see which way it had come from.

"The lights are still flickering in Red's hangar." Hunk pointed out. They wordlessly began running towards the hangar. The lights returned to normal when they made it inside. They paused only a tick before running forward again. "Guys, the red lion's down."

"What?!" Allura's shouted as she climbed out of Blue. She shot out of her hangar, moving as quickly as she could to Red's hangar. Shiro reached the center at the same time as her. "Lonce, are you there? What happened?" There was no answer. The two Paladins pushed themselves to run faster while Pidge and Hunk made their way into the red lion's head. Inside, they found Lance slumped in his seat, his head on the armrest.

"Paladins, what's going on?" Coran asked worriedly.

"I don't know." Pidge spoke, running up to Lance. "Lance, are you alright?" She began shaking his arm, trying to get him up.

'Ooh…" He groaned quietly, cracking his eyes open. Ticks later, his vision cleared and he glanced at Pidge. "What happened?" He weakly sat up, slipping his helmet off as Shiro and Allura joined them.

"Lance?" Shiro pulled off his own helmet before leaning over the chair, taking a closer look at him.

Lance shifted, moving his hand to the side of his face. The skin on his cheek was tender and sore. A look crossed Pidge and Hunk's faces and Pidge reached forward, moving his hand out of the way. "Oh, ouch." She cringed, seeing the bruise that was beginning to form on the side of his face. "You must have hit your head when you crashed." Allura and Shiro shifted to that side of the chair, looking as well.

"What did you do? Pass out?" Allura crossed her arms. She knew he hadn't been well.

Lance slumped back into his seat, squeezing his eyes shut. "I… I guess I did."

Shiro looked at Hunk. "Hunk, can you go fix up something big for him to eat? I think he used all of his energy in that fight. We'll get him up to the kitchen while you're at it."

"Sure thing!" Hunk patted his friend's shoulder before running off. Pidge stepped away as Shiro carefully pulled Lance to his feet, keeping him steady.

The girls led the way out of red lion. When they were all in the hangar, Pidge joking crossed her arms and grinned at Lance. "It's a good thing Iverson isn't around. It wasn't the stimulator you crashed this time."

Lance let out a weak laugh, leaning against Shiro who held him up. "Hey, at least I wasn't the one who barfed in the gearbox."

Pidge chuckled under breath. Shiro watched them quietly, enjoying their humor despite the situation. "That is true. But I'm not sure which was worse: when you crashed the stimulator or what you said right before that."

Lance's cheeks reddened. "Can we just forget I ever said that?"

"Do I even want to know?" Shiro looked down at the boy, raising an eyebrow. Lance shook his head as Pidge's grin widened.

"What? You don't want them to know about how your flight school called you "The Tailor"?" She continued down the hall. Shiro straightened, morbidly curious. Allura shook her head, deciding she didn't want to know. Before Lance could finish a grumble, the girl continued, meeting Shiro's gaze. "It's because of how he threads the needle." Lance's face burned brighter as she mimicked the face he had made all that time ago.

"Katie, I swear-" Lance's threat was cut off by Shiro and Allura's laughter. Pidge continued to snicker. "Oh come on! I said that like a decaphoeb ago. It's not like I meant it!"

Shiro cleared his throat after a dobosh, resuming a serious expression. "Well, that's certainly something you'd say." Lance grumbled again. A few short doboshes later, the four Paladins arrived in the kitchen where Hunk was putting on the finishing touches of an exotic meal. They hadn't seen a meal like this since the time Allura had a diplomatic meeting with the rebel leaders some time ago.

"Wow, Hunk, you outdid yourself here." Allura commented, smiling. Shiro helped Lance to the table, where Pidge had already taken a seat.

"Hey, anything for my friends, especially when it comes to food." Hunk grinned, bringing over several plates. Lance ate slowly, not wanting to make himself feel any sicker. He listened to the other Paladins' conversations, but didn't participate much. Even after eating, he still wasn't feeling great.

Allura kept an eye on him as the meal progressed. Some color had returned to his face, but he still didn't look well. The bruise on his face was beginning to turn purple, showing just how hard he hit his head, and bags were under his sea blue eyes. "Lonce, perhaps, you should go lay down for a bit."

"I think I will." He sighed, slowly standing. Before he left the room, he turned to Hunk. "Hunk, thanks for the meal." He gave his friend a small smile and walked out, loosely crossing his arms. It was time he returned to Keith's side, although he'd most likely be sleeping beside his pod.

The Paladins watched him go, their worry growing with each step he took. "Is he really okay?" Hunk looked at Allura and Shiro. "The last time I worried about him like this was when Sendak attacked us on Arus."

"He looks really sick." Pidge agreed, leaning against the table.

"He's only eaten two meals in the past two movements." Allura sighed, glancing down at her hands. "Lance did this to himself, but I think we all need to look after him. I don't want to risk losing two Paladins." Her blue eyes followed the four mice as they ran up to Pidge, who greeted them with little pats.

Shiro crossed his arms, looking at Allura. "Speaking of which, is there anything new on Keith?"

"Not really. He seems to be doing a little better in the new pod. His wounds are healing faster. The blast he took to the shoulder is almost gone." Allura paused. "The wound on his stomach is far from fixed though. At this rate, he'll be in the pod for another movement. Maybe two." Pidge and Hunk sank in their seats while Shiro nodded slowly.

"Which means we need to keep an eye on the pod. There's a high chance this one could shut down within the next couple of quintants." Shiro looked at the others.

Pidge sat up in her seat. "Allura, you and Coran were in the pods for ten thousand years and you had no problems with them. Why are they shutting down on Keith?"

"It could be a number of things." Allura thought aloud. "When Coran and I were in them, they were only keeping us asleep. That required very little power to do so, plus the Castle remained in one place, so it was able to maintain that power. Now that the Castle is fully powered all the time, it's harder to do so. It doesn't help that it is so old. Healing a person also requires a significantly large amount of energy, especially considering the wounds Keith has."

"Oh, I see." Pidge spoke. "In that case, perhaps we should set up some kind of watch. That way one of us is always there to check up on the pod and Keith."

Shiro nodded in approval. "That sounds like a good plan."

Before anyone else could speak, Coran peered into the room, his bright eyes settling on Pidge. "Sorry to interrupt, but Pidge you have an unexpected visitor." The Four Paladins straightened as Coran stepped to the side. Pidge's older brother walked up beside him.

"Matt!" The girl squealed and scrambled out of her chair, hugging her brother tightly.

The older boy laughed and hugged her back. "Hey, Katie." Shiro smiled at both of them and he and the others stood, greeting him.

"It's so nice to see you!" Pidge stepped back, looking at her brother. "What are you doing here? Don't you have important stuff to do on Olkarion? I know you just got back there."

"I did, yeah." He shrugged, his eyes meeting Shiro and Allura's. "Ryner had someone else take my responsibilities for a short while. She wanted me to come here." Allura's face grew serious and she nodded, understanding. "She and Olia told us about what happened to Keith. Is there any update on him? Ryner hadn't heard anything."

Pidge glanced at the others. Shiro glanced down at the floor. "Unfortunately, Keith is still in a healing pod."

Matt's eyes widened and he looked at the others for confirmation. "He's… still in a pod? Hasn't it been two movements since he crashed?" Allura nodded.

"I can take you to see him." Pidge spoke quietly. "We were just talking about setting up a watch to keep an eye on him." She looked at the others. "I can just take the first watch."

"I'll come to relieve you in a few vargas." Shiro nodded.

Pidge smiled lightly and began pulling on Matt's arm. He loosely followed her, numb by the turn of events. "It was nice to see you again, Matt." Allura told him before they left.

"I bet you Lance is probably in the infirmary too. He spends a lot of time in there these quintants." The girl shrugged, meeting her brother's gaze as they walked. Matt quirked a brow. "Lance hasn't really been himself since the accident. He's the one who rescued Keith." She paused. "Shiro said that something about the experience traumatized him."

Matt nodded quietly. "I guess I can see why. From what Ryner and Olia told me, it sounded really bad."

"Yeah, it was." She sighed, leading him to the infirmary. "Lance, you in here?" She called. Lance was leaning against Keith's pod, sound asleep. "Oh, he's resting." Pidge whispered when she saw him. Matt slowly walked closer to the pod, glancing between both Lance and Keith.

His eyes saddened and, after a long dobosh, he turned to face Pidge. "I certainly didn't expect any of this when I showed up at the Castle." He sighed. He took a final glance at both of them before frowning. "Do I even want to know what happened to Lance's face?"

"He crashed his lion today after a fight and hit his head." Pidge shrugged, casually walking over to the control panel. "I'm sure he'll be fine in no time. Lance is usually pretty good at bouncing back..." She trailed off. Usually. Pidge began another scan on Keith, realizing one hadn't been done for the quintant.

"Huh. Alright." Matt shrugged and walked up to her, watching her mess with the control panel. "Whatchya doing, Pidge?"

"Beginning Keith's daily body scan. It's the one way we can track how he's doing. I see his vitals are still low." She glanced at her brother.

Matt continued to watch her work until a small beep alerted the pair that the scan was done. Pidge steeled herself before pulling it up. The scan had changed since the quintant before's. More warmth had returned to Keith's body and the burn from the blast on his shoulder was gone. The wound on his stomach had shrunk. It was half the size it had been, although it was still large. "Wait, this is Keith right now? I thought he was getting better. This looks awful."

Pidge pursed her lips. "Well, this is what healing looks like, believe it or not." After some careful thought, she looked through the list of scans and pulled up the first one. "This is what he looked like the day it happened."

"He's lucky to be alive." Matt looked away from the scans to Keith. It was easier looking at him in person. The scans were too much. Pidge nodded in agreement, adjusting her glasses. "But at least I'll be able to update Ryner and Kolivan. They hope every day for some kind of update, but get nothing from the Castle."

"It's hard to update people when there's nothing to say." Pidge powered down the control panel and stepped away, growing stiff in her armor. After a few ticks, she turned and faced him. "So what have you been up to, hotshot? I heard about that mission you and Olia pulled off a phoeb ago. Those supplies really helped everyone out."

The young man laughed. "It was "no big deal"." He quoted her, remembering the time she and Hunk told him about the alternate reality. Pidge snickered, a smile remaining on her young face. "Besides, it was more Olia than me. I'm just a communications specialist."

"Whatever you say, Mister Humility." Pidge rolled her eyes.

"Matt?" A voice came from behind them and they both turned to see Lance sitting up on the top step in front of Keith's pod. Small smiles crossed their face and they walked up to him. "Hey man, I didn't know you were coming." He weakly stood up.

"Yeah, I showed up unannounced." Matt shrugged, smiling a little. "It was worth seeing the surprise on Pidge's face." The girl nodded.

Lance's eyebrows rose slightly and a faint grin formed on his lips. "Well, you're always welcome here. You know how much Pidge misses having you around, especially with your dad back on Earth."

Matt wrapped his arm around his sister's small shoulders. "When this war is over, we'll have all the time in the world." Pidge nodded and beamed, happy as always. After a few ticks, he slipped his arm off, sighing. "Well, speaking of the war, I need to go talk to Shiro and Allura. Ryner wanted me to pass on a message to them."

"I'll go with you!" Pidge straightened.

"You have to stay here, remember? You took the first shift of the watch." Matt looked down at her.

"Oh yeah…" She huffed, loosely crossing her arms.

Matt let out a lighthearted laughed and began walking towards the door. "Don't worry, I'll probably be back in half a varga."

"Wait, what watch?" Lance frowned, looking at Pidge.

Pidge continued to watch her brother head towards the door. "Oh, everyone decided we should take turns watching over Keith, especially with the whole pod-" She turned her head in time to see a flash of light. Her eyes widened and she stopped mid-sentence. "Oh quiznak!" At the door, Matt stopped in his tracks, looking back at them. Lance straightened as she bolted for the control panel, firing it up.

Lance turned around to see what had set her into panic mode. Keith's healing pod began to flicker, going dark. "Pidge, what's going on?" He ran up to the pod.

"It's shutting down!" Her hands tried to get the control panel up and running. "I know I won't be able to stop it. I'm opening pod number three now."

"What do you mean it's shutting down?" Matt ran back into the room, his eyes on Keith. The hushed alarm began to sound.

"Pidge, hurry!" Fear crossed Lance's face as the light in the pod went out for several ticks. Keith was running out of time.

"I'm trying, the control panel is being slow! It's probably because I'm not Altean. Matt, I need you to get Shiro and Allura. I'll explain what's going on later! Please hurry!" Pidge glanced wildly at her brother, frustration clear on her young face. "Come on you blasted piece of machinery. Work!" She shouted as Matt shot out of the room and into the hallway.

The alarm grew louder and the pod shut down, its green barrier disappearing. Lance caught Keith before he could fall. "Keith!" He pulled the unconscious man from the useless pod and laid him on the floor, anxiously waiting for the next pod to come up. "Come on. Come on…" He muttered and quickly pressed his hands against the fist-sized wound on Keith's stomach, seeing the blood that had already begun to seep through the uniform again. His face hardened as he focused on stopping the blood flow.

"Lance?" A hushed voice threw off his guard and his eyes met Keith's half opened, blue-grey eyes. His heart faltered and a tear streaked down his face. He had waited so long to see those eyes again. A pained expression crossed Keith's face and his eyes closed as he let out a ragged breath. "What's going on?" He barely whispered between shaky breaths. Keith didn't understand. He couldn't make out a solid memory. What had happened? He searched for the last thing he remembered, but all he had was a fuzzy recollection of Lance's tear-soaked face in front of a dark purple background. He tore his eyes open, fighting through the pain to see Lance again. He was surprised to see him still in his Paladin armor, that was until he noticed there was no blood on it. "What happened.. to your face?"

"Don't worry about my face right now. Your pod shut down and we're trying to get another open." Lance spoke quickly before glancing over his shoulder. "Pidge, what's taking so long?!"

Pidge let out a frustrated growl. The screen finally flashed on and she pressed the button for pod number three. "It's coming up now, hang on!"

Lance nodded and shifted closer to Keith, applying more pressure to the wound. A pained cry escaped Keith's lips and he writhed underneath Lance's hands. Lance winced, more tears streaming down his face. "I'm sorry." He barely whispered to his boyfriend.

"Lance, it's up! Get him in there!" Pidge shouted from the control panel. Her finger hovered over the start button.

Keith shakily nodded to Lance, who reluctantly removed his hands from Keith's stomach and slipped his arms beneath him. Keith painfully groaned as Lance lifted him off the ground, his head becoming dizzy. "Keith," Lance whispered into his ear as he ran to the new pod. "take however long you need to heal. I'll be here when you wake up, I promise. I love you."

Keith's exhausted eyes met his before Lance stood him up in the new pod. "I love you too, Lance." He whispered back. A tear streaked down Lance's face as he stepped out of the pod, his hands leaving Keith's body. As soon as he was out, Pidge hit the button, activating the greenish barrier and starting the freezing process again. Keith's body straightened and one corner of his lips pulled up at Lance before his blue-grey eyes closed once more. Lance sucked in a pained breath and staggered back a couple of steps, his heart growing heavy.

"That was too close." Pidge ran up to Lance, holding on to his arm. There was a hint of tears in her large eyes. They both stared at Keith, barely able to stand. Lance slowly sank to the ground and sat with his legs out in front of him, wrapping his arms around his knees. His face hardened and he squeezed his eyes shut, trying to fight the urge to break down. Pidge knelt down beside him, holding on to his shoulder instead.

Ticks later, the other three Paladins, Coran, and Matt arrived in the infirmary, all out of breath from running. "Oh, thank the ancients, you got him into another pod!" Coran spoke as Matt stared at the blood stain on Keith's uniform.

Lance's eyes slowly cracked open and he looked at his gloved hands, seeing the blood that shimmered on them. "He was awake." Pidge nodded at his side.

Shiro and Allura exchanged glances. Hunk walked up to his friends, sitting down beside them. "I don't understand how this pod failed so quickly. It's only been three quintants. The other one lasted for a movement and a half." Allura frowned.

"Allura, I think I know why." Pidge stood up and approached the control panel.

"Wait, this isn't the first time the pod failed?" Matt glanced around wildly at everyone else. Hunk shook his head in response.

"I took this scan maybe three doboshes before the pod shut down." Pidge motioned for Allura to join her. Coran followed as well.

Allura's eyebrows rose and she looked closer. "I don't believe it." She paused, enlarging the scan. "Keith healed twice as fast in the second pod." Lance turned around and climbed to his feet, looking hopefully at the scan. He could immediately see the difference in Keith's wounds. "That explains why he was awake this time around."

Coran stepped in and began pulling up something else on a side screen. "Princess, there was a surge in power that increased in this room three quintants ago. It must have caused the first pod to shut down and sped up the second."

"Coran, are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Allura straightened. She dismissed the scan of Keith and enlarged the screen Coran had pulled up. The older man nodded. "Shut down all unnecessary systems and redirect the power to the infirmary. Pidge, Hunk, can you create a stabilizer to regulate the flow of energy? If we can fine tune it, maybe we can speed up Keith's healing time, but prevent the pods from shutting down."

"We'll get right on it!" Pidge grabbed her helmet and ran out of the room.

"I'll help!" Matt followed her and Hunk out of the room.

Coran made his exit as well. "Redirecting power now!" He spoke, on his way towards the bridge.

Allura nodded. "Lonce, Shiro, stay here and watch over Keith and the pod. We need two people in here at all times to take care of both. I'm going to go move the Castle to a safer location since we won't have everything readily available for a fight." The two men nodded in response. Satisfied, Allura ran out of the room, heading to the bridge as well.

Lance sat down in front of control panel, weakly leaning against it. His gaze returned to his gloves and he shakily pulled the black fabric off, tossing the bloody pieces away. To his dismay, the blood had seeped through, staining his tan hands brick-red. He drew in a shaky breath and closed his eyes. His hands clenched into tight fists and he lowered them into his lap. His chest ached as he focused on remembering Keith's eyes. Remembering the faint smile. "I can't keep doing this, Shiro."

"You won't have to, Lance." There was a sound to his right and he opened his eyes to see Shiro taking a seat next to him. "The others are going to figure this out. They're going to take care of Keith." Shiro looked at the younger man. "We just need to take care of you." Lance's eyes met his and he nodded, agreeing. Shiro patted his shoulder before sitting back. A few ticks later, he slipped his helmet on. "For whoever gets back next, can you bring a huge bowl or two of food goo?" Lance snickered tiredly as Shiro removed his helmet, setting it on the floor. "Go ahead and rest, Lance. I'll wake you up if anything changes." Lance nodded and rested his head back, closing his eyes. Sleep came faster than he anticipated.


	4. Part Four

WARNING: CONTAINS SEASON 5 SPOILERS. READ AT YOUR OWN RISK. This fan fic contains mildly suggestive sexual themes and goes into detail about wounds and blood. It's probably ok for most people, but I figured i might as well put up a warning. It also has a gay ship in it, please no hating.

Paladin Down - Part 4

"The stabilizer's been put in place. Pidge and Matt knew where to put it." Lance awoke to the sound of Hunks voice. "I really hope it works." His voice drew closer.

"Me too, buddy." Shiro responded beside Lance. Lance drew in a tired breath and sat up, looking around. Hunk was sitting on the other side of him. "Good morning." Shiro snickered, glancing at him.

Lance's eyebrows pulled together. "How long has it been?" He felt stiff and sore, but that could have been from the crash.

"About five vargas." Shiro shrugged. "Hunk's been here for about two of those. I just got back from a break.

"Oh." Lance blinked, looking up at Keith's pod. His boyfriend was still in there, but the blood on his uniform was already gone. "Is there anything new on Keith?" He asked.

Hunk slid a bowl of food goo to Lance, who thanked him and picked it up. He was starving. Shiro watched them both. "I took a scan about half a varga ago. His legs have completely healed and his wound is a little bit smaller." Lance nodded and began eating. At this point, Keith was getting better faster than he was. "Allura's idea for a stabilizer was great. We haven't had any problems with the pod, despite the increase in energy."

"We'll still have to look after it. That could change at any time." Shiro closed his eyes, resting his head back on the control panel. For once, he looked exhausted.

"Yeah…" Lance looked at his hands for a brief second. A few ticks later, he spoke up again. "Is Matt still here?"

"Yeah, he is. He's enjoying his time with Pidge since he doesn't get to see her much." Hunk answered, beginning to eat his own bowl of food goo. "He'll be leaving tomorrow." He paused. "I think he's also hoping that Keith will be out of the pod by then, so he'll have news for Ryner and Kolivan."

Shiro's eyes cracked open and he looked at Hunk. "I don't blame him for hoping, but even after boosting the energy, I don't think Keith's going to be ready that soon."

"I was thinking the same thing." Hunk and Lance continued to eat quietly while Shiro rested his eyes.

After a few doboshes, Lance turned to Shiro. "Shiro, you should go rest. You look exhausted."

"Hey, at least I don't look as bad as you." Shiro opened his eyes again, a smile on his face. Hunk chuckled beside him. "I'll be fine. It was just a long night."

"Still, I just got five vargas of sleep. I think you can take a few yourself." Lance set his empty bowl down before loosely crossing his arms.

Shiro snickered. "Fine, but I'm sleeping right here. I don't feel much like moving." The man shifted into a better position before resting his head back against the control panel, closing his eyes.

Lance relaxed back as well, his eyes returning to Keith's pod. Something in him changed as he watched. He was finally feeling hopeful about the situation. Perhaps it was because he heard Keith's voice or seen his beautiful eyes, something he only experienced when Keith was awake. Perhaps it was the small smile Keith gave him before returning to unconsciousness. It gave him hope that maybe Keith knew he had to fight. Lance's eyes softened and he wrapped his arms around his knees, lost in thought. Hunk noticed the change in his friend, seeing that he suddenly looked better; more alive than he had been in the past two movements. "Hey, Lance, how's your bruise doing?" He asked after a dobosh.

"It's not as sensitive as it was yesterday." Lance looked at him, giving his friend a slight smile. "I'm hoping it'll be gone by tomorrow." He spoke quietly, making sure not to keep Shiro up, and uncurled himself.

"It probably will be, especially since you're starting to look better." Hunk shifted, a grin on his face. "Maybe I should get you more food."

Lance let out a lighthearted laugh. "There's no need for that. I'll get myself some more in a bit. My legs could use the stretch." Lance wanted to talk more with his friend, especially since they didn't do as many things together anymore. Space wasn't like the Garrison.

"Do you have to go?" Pidge whined, tugging on her brother's sleeve.

Matt laughed, trying to load his things on to his shuttle. "Katie, you know I have an important job on Olkarion. Besides, I'm sure I'll see you soon enough." He set his bag down and walked out a final time to say his goodbyes. "Perhaps you guys can come back to Olkarion soon." He smiled at the Paladins standing outside his shuttle. Everyone but Coran and Hunk was there. They were watching over Keith and his pod.

Allura smiled. "I'm sure we'll be down before the next phoeb starts." Shiro nodded at her side.

"Have a safe flight, Matt." Lance stood with his hands in his pockets, a content look on his face.

"I will." Matt nodded, understanding what he meant. After a tick, his face saddened and his eyes met Allura's. "It's too bad Keith didn't wake up before I left. Will you let us know when he does?"

Allura's face softened. "Of course."

Matt nodded slowly before turning to Pidge. "Well, Pidge, I gotta go now. You be safe out there. I'll see you soon, alright?" He gave her a smile. Pidge grinned back and wrapped her arms tightly around her brother, giving him a final hug. Ticks later, Matt boarded his shuttle and departed from the Castle, returning to Olkarion. The Paladins watched him go before going about their duties. Allura and Shiro headed up to the bridge, wanting to check on the Castle's systems and monitor the energy flowing into the infirmary.

"Hey, Pidge, do you want to grab some food? I'm starving." Lance walked up to Pidge.

"You always are these quintants." Pidge laughed. "But yeah, I'd like that. I could use some food." The pair contently walked down the halls, heading to the kitchen. Pidge talked excitedly to Lance, enjoying his company over lunch. She really hadn't seen much of him. She missed his dumb jokes. "It's good to have you back, Lance." She finally said as they put their trays away. "I missed being annoyed."

"It's good to be back." He laughed, understanding what she meant. "Not sure I'll be annoying you though." He teased and walked through the door.

"What?" Pidge followed him, surprise on her young face. "Since when?"

Lance snickered. "I'm joking Pidge. It'll continue. But I'm warning you."

"Oh boy." The girl rolled her eyes, playing along with his game. "Well, now that I'm stuffed, I think I'm going to head to the bridge. I want to see If I can find a way to improve the particle barrier."

Lance smiled, pausing in the hallway. "That sounds like a good plan. At least then we won't have to rescue Coran as much." Pidge grinned at his comment. "See ya later."

"See ya!" Pidge waved before going her own separate route. After a few ticks, Lance continued down the same hallway as before, returning to the infirmary. He wanted to see how Keith was doing. He knew there would be a new scan up by now.

"Ah, good to see you, Lance!" Coran greeted him when he entered the infirmary. Coran and Hunk were standing in front of the control panel. "You're just in time, Keith's scan just finished." Lance's eyebrows pulled up and he quickly walked up to them as Coran pulled up the scan, enlarging it over the panel. "Well, would you look at that."

Lance stared closely at the scan, surprise crossing his face. "His wound. It's… It's closed now."

Coran nodded. "Aye, it is." He took a closer look. "It looks like it still has some healing to do internally, but at least we don't have to worry about him bleeding out anymore. At this rate, I'd say he may come out of the pod as early as tomorrow." Lance smiled, warmth filling his body.

"We should go tell the others!" Hunk beamed excitedly.

"Well, we can't exactly do that right now. We're still on shift." Coran shrugged, powering down the control panel.

Lance shrugged and looked at both of them. "Go ahead, guys. I can stay here. Besides, your shift is almost over." He smiled a little.

"But Allura said there should always be two people here." Hunk thought aloud.

"That was before Keith's wound closed up. You said it yourself Coran; we don't have to worry about him bleeding out if something does happen to the pod." Lance loosely crossed his arms. "Just go. You can always come back."

"Oh, alright." Coran shrugged. "We'll be back in a few doboshes." After a few ticks, the two bolted from the room, barely able to contain their excitement.

Lance laughed, watching them go, then he smiled and approached Keith's pod, placing his hand on it. "You're in the homestretch, babe. I'll be here, waiting for you." He pressed his forehead against the greenish barrier and closed his eyes. When Keith got out, he wasn't going to let him out of his sight.

As promised, Coran and Hunk returned, along with everyone else. The excitement filled the room as everyone else anxiously wondered exactly when Keith would wake up. After some time, the others slowly made their way out to the room, continuing with their day. Allura stayed behind, offering to take the next shift with Lance. She knew he wouldn't leave now. "I can't tell you how happy I was when Coran and Hunk came in." She smiled at Lance, approaching him after everyone was gone.

"Yeah." Lance smiled at her. "I walked in here just as they were pulling up the scan." He walked up to the pod again, looking happily at Keith. He felt like his heart was going to burst. "I can't wait to have him back. This has been the hardest two and a half movements of my life."

Allura nodded, taking a seat on the steps. "As odd as this may sound, perhaps this situation was something we all needed. It brought us all together. Strengthened our bonds. It taught us things we didn't know before." Lance looked away from Keith and nodded to her, understanding. After several doboshes, he sat down beside her, anxiously waiting. "Lance, can I ask you something?" Allura asked some time later.

"Sure." He shrugged, not quite sure what she might ask him.

"Do you think you and Keith will continue to keep your relationship a secret?" She looked ahead as she spoke, unsure of how to phrase what she wanted to say.

"Oh." Lance straightened, thinking. "To tell you the truth, I don't know. Personally, I wouldn't mind telling the others. It was nice having you and Shiro's support through all of this and I think it would help us. But at this point, I'll have to see what Keith's view on this is and how comfortable he'd be with it."

Allura gave him a small smile. "I can respect that." She paused. "No matter what, you have my support."

"And you have mine." He grinned. "So you took my advice and finally talked to Shiro, huh?"

A subtle blush washed over her cheeks. "You could say that. Although it was more awkward than anything. He thought I had a crush on you." She rested her head in her hands.

Lance tried to hold back a laugh. "Oh, that's not good." He shifted, resting his hands in his lap. "If you had said something like that almost a decaphoeb ago, I probably would've keeled over. What did you tell him?"

"I told him the truth. I was worried about you because you weren't coping well with everything going on with Keith and that I was supporting you. Then I told him how I felt." She shrugged. "Of course, right after that, he put two and two together and figured out you guys were together. Sorry about that." Allura made a face.

"Eh, don't worry about it. As I said, it was nice to have both of your guys' support." Lance relaxed before his eyebrows pulled together. "How do you think the others will react if Keith and I do come out?"

Allura leaned forward, thinking. "If I'm perfectly honest, I don't think Pidge or Hunk will be too surprised. They've known both of you for awhile. Although with the way you acted before, they may be shocked. Who knows. Coran will definitely need time to adjust." She snickered. "But, Lance, don't worry about what they think. This is your happiness and your life. Our opinions shouldn't matter."

"Thanks, Allura." Lance smiled. "So, should I keep my mouth zipped about you two?"

"For now, yes." She sat up, a faint smile on her face. "Shiro and I are still figuring things out. Then I'll let you know." Lance nodded, relaxing again. "Thanks for being a good friend, Lance. You're easy to talk to."

"You're welcome." He smiled once more. A few ticks later, the door to the infirmary opened and Shiro stepped in.

Allura straightened at the sight of him. "Do you mind if I whisk her away for a few doboshes?" Shiro glanced at Lance.

"Not at all." Lance snickered, leaning forward. Allura stood up and walked to Shiro, happiness filling her features. Shiro nodded and led her out of the room, taking her hand in his. Lance smiled before the door closed behind them. He was happy he was able to help them get together. After some time, he rested his head in his hands, slowly growing lonely. He sighed and had just closed his eyes when a faint sound came from his left. "Huh?" He looked up to see the green barrier on Keith's pod had disappeared. Lance scrambled to his feet, catching Keith before he fell. "Keith?" His sea blue eyes widened and he looked at the man in his arms.

Keith clung to him as they both sank to their knees. When they were both on the ground, his blue-grey eyes met Lance's. "Lance?" He weakly spoke, looking over his boyfriend. The bruise on his face was gone and he looked a lot better, at least from what he could remember. His memory was still fuzzy.

"Keith!" Lance gasped and pulled Keith closer to him, kissing him passionately. Keith, surprised by the sudden move, slowly melted in Lance's hands. As Lance pulled away, his hands held Keith's face. "Oh my god. I can't believe you're finally awake! I've been waiting for so long." A tear streaked down his face. "Please don't ever scare me like that again."

Keith's face softened and he clung on to Lance, fully awakening. "Lance, I'm okay. I'm here." His own eyes filled with tears. "And I'm not going anywhere."

"I love you, Keith." Lance shakily smiled, tangling his fingers in Keith's black hair.

"I love you, too." Keith gave him a big smile. Lance had never seen anything like it. Lance let out a shaky breath and tightly wrapped his arms around Keith, burying his face in the crook of his neck. Keith did the same, holding his boyfriend close.

A dobosh later, a gasp came from the entrance of the room and they both looked up to see Allura standing in the doorway. "Welcome back, Keith." She smiled. The corner of his lips pulled up. After a tick, she peered out the door, her eyes widening. "Shiro!" She shouted before moving into the room, embracing both Keith and Lance. Lance let out a lighthearted laugh, hugging Keith tighter as Allura's arms wrapped around them. "We were so worried about you."

Over Allura's shoulder, Keith could see Shiro run into the room. His eyes widened when he saw the three of them, especially Keith. "Keith?!" He sprinted the rest of the way before skidding to his knees and wrapping his arms around them. "Oh, thank god!"

The four of them stayed like this for several doboshes until Keith finally spoke up. "Guys, I love you all, but I can't breathe." Shiro chuckled and released them all, sitting back. Allura followed suit, then Lance reluctantly let go. "I… So, what happened? How long have I been out? I vaguely remember being in the fighter and waking up in here at some point." He glanced between the three of them, hoping for answers.

"Well," Allura sighed, sitting on a step just below Shiro's. "You've been out for almost fourteen quintants."

"F-fourteen?" Keith's thick eyebrows pulled together and he blinked in confusion, glancing at Lance. "I… I guess that explains why the bruise on your face is gone- Wait, why do I remember that? Why was I out of the pod?" His memories were nothing but fragments at this point.

Shiro lightly placed a hand on his shoulder. "Slow down, Keith. The last thing we need is you to overwhelm yourself." Keith slowly nodded, lowering his gaze to the floor. "The truth is, we had to switch you between three pods because they would shut down when they ran too long. The first time it happened, you had been in there for eight quintants. Somehow you had barely healed, so you didn't wake up. Three quintants later, it happened again, but you had healed more."

"That's probably why you remember Lonce." Allura finished for him.

Keith searched his cloudy memories. They were beginning to come back. "Do I even want to know where that bruise came from?" Keith raised an eyebrow at Lance.

Lance made a face as Shiro chuckled. Allura sighed, elbowing him in the side. He knew that situation wasn't something to laugh about. "I don't really want to talk about that right now. I can explain later." Lance paused, glancing at Shiro and Allura. "I'm sure the others will want to know you're awake." Keith nodded.

"Are you able to walk?" Allura asked him.

"Well, my legs aren't broken anymore, so I assume so." Keith shrugged. Lance stood up and held his hands out to Keith, offering him help up. Keith weakly took them and pulled himself up. After a few ticks, he was able to steady himself and could stand on his own. His legs did feel weird, but that was to be expected after they were nearly crushed.

Allura and Shiro stood up as well. "I think we should surprise the others. They weren't expecting you to wake up for another six vargas." Allura looked at Keith, who nodded.

"That sounds like a great idea." Shiro placed his hand on Allura's shoulder. She smiled at him. Keith's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Keith, go get into some regular clothes. It'll help you feel like yourself. Allura and I will get the others together."

"Maybe you can convince Hunk to cook a big meal. That should bring everyone together." Lance shrugged, placing a hand on Keith's back.

Allura beamed. "Great idea." She turned and started towards the door, tugging Shiro with her. He stumbled for a tick before catching his balance and moving with her.

Keith watched them wordlessly before turning to Lance when the door closed. "Am I missing something?"

"It happened just six quintants ago. They're still figuring things out." Lance chuckled, kissing Keith's forehead. "Oh, speaking of which, Shiro also knows about us."

"Wait, what?" Keith straightened.

"Oh, come on!" Lance grabbed his hand and walked towards the door.

Keith grunted and tried to keep up. "Lance, slow down. You're moving to fast for me." Lance immediately began walking slower. "Is there anything else I should know about?"

"Um…" Lance thought for a minute. "We gave Kolivan your Blades uniform to fix up. I kept your knife here because I knew you wanted it with you. Your mom was here for a quintant, but she had to go on a mission. Uh, Matt was also here. Ryner and Olia wanted him to come-" As soon as Lance mentioned Kolivan, Ryner, and Olia, Keith couldn't hear anything. Flashes of his last memories flooded his mind. He could hear the blasts from sentries and the explosions that rocked his ship. He could hear a fellow Blade member announcing that he was being shot down. Ryner, Olia, and the other rebels flashed in front of him, all dressed in the tattered galra uniform. Keith sucked in a breath, his eyes widening, and he stopped in his tracks. "Keith?" Lance's voice broke through the horror and his face came into Keith's view. "Keith, what's wrong?"

"I… I…" He drew in a breath and shook his head. "What… happened that day? Did all the rebels make it out alive? How did you know I crashed? How did you know where to find me?"

Lance's face saddened and he placed his hands on Keith's shoulders. "Kolivan called us for backup after he lost you and two other pilots, only he didn't tell us who he lost… He got all of the rebels onto the Castle while we finished off the cruiser and fighters. When we realized you weren't there, one of the Blades told us you crashed in the mountains." Lance paused to wrap his arms around Keith, who had begun to shake. "Red is the one who found you."

"Red… found me?" Keith looked up at Lance.

"Somehow she knew where you were." Lance shrugged. "Keith, you don't have to worry about anything now. Everything turned out fine."

Keith nodded slowly and cupped Lance's cheek with a hand. "You still haven't told me what happened to your face."

Lance sighed. It was bound to come up eventually. "I… didn't really take care of myself for awhile after you got hurt. Especially after Allura told us that you weren't really healing and that there was a chance you wouldn't get better… I didn't eat and I was weak because of that. I ended up passing out trying to land my lion after a fight and hit my head."

"Lance…" Keith started.

"Hey, I'm fine." Lance stepped away, taking Keith's hand again. "Now, we should really get you dressed." Keith grumbled but followed him. A few doboshes later, they reached Keith's room. "Go ahead and sit down, I'll grab you some clothes." Keith nodded, weakly sitting on his bed. He was already exhausted. Lance darted around, grabbing Keith's usual dark pants and shirt. He handed them to him before grabbing his belt and sliding his knife into the sheath.

"Are you sure you want to be in here while I'm changing?" Keith glanced at the fresh pair of clothes.

Lance gave him a look. "It's not like I haven't seen it all before."

"I… didn't mean that." He muttered, glancing up at Lance. Worry crossed his face and he felt sick. "A wound that bad is bound to have some nasty scarring."

"Babe," Lance knelt down in front of Keith, taking Keith's hands in his. "I saw it before and after the rock was taken out. I think I can handle a gruesome scar." Keith closed his eyes, numbly nodding. Lance looked at the clothes in his lap. "Hmm, there's just one thing missing. I'll be back in a tic." He stood up and ran out of the room.

While Keith waited for Lance to return, he set the clothes aside and steeled himself, loosening the healing suit. He had slipped his arms out of the suit by the time Lance came back. Both of their jackets were in his hands. Keith's face softened when he saw them. "You had my jacket this whole time?"

Lance smiled. "Of course I did. You always leave it with me when you go away as a way of showing you'll be back. I held on to it as a promise."

"I don't deserve you, Lance McClain." Keith pulled him closer, wrapping his arms around his torso. Lance ran a hand through his black hair, then he sat down beside his boyfriend, placing a gentle kiss on his lips.

When he pulled away, there was a playful smile on his lips. "Come on. I've seen you in this suit for too long." Keith snickered under his breath, then he began sliding the suit down the rest of the way, pausing at his stomach for only a tick. The scar there was much smaller than either of them had been expecting. After that, Keith felt better and quickly changed into his regular clothes, slipping on his belt and jacket. Lance's smile returned, bigger this time. "There he is. There's my Keith." Keith lightly smiled back as Lance slipped on his own jacket.

"I'm ready to see the others." Keith sighed, opening the door to his room. Lance nodded and followed him out. They held each other's hands as they slowly walked down the hallways, making their way to dining room.

When they were almost there, Lance stopped. "Hey, Keith?"

"Yeah?" Keith paused, looking at him. His eyebrows pulled up.

"I think I'm ready to tell the others about us." Lance faced him. "If there's anything I've learned these past two and a half movements, its that I'm tired of hiding."

Keith nodded, a smile making its way on to his serious face. "If you're ready, then I'm ready." Lance smiled back and they continued to the dining room, where they could hear the others' chatter through the door. Lance could smell whatever Hunk had cooked clear down the hallway. Lance opened the door, leading the way inside. Coran, Shiro, and Pidge were sitting at the table while Allura and Hunk set down bowls of food. The room went silent when they saw Keith enter.

"Keith!" Pidge and Hunk scrambled to their feet, running over to him. Lance stepped to the side as they both embraced his boyfriend. Shiro and Allura slowly approached. Lance smiled at them, his heart finally whole again. "When did you wake up?!" Hunk slowly released him.

"Not too long ago." Keith shrugged as Coran got in his turn for a hug. "It's nice to see everyone. I know it's been awhile..."

Pidge grinned from ear to ear. "We're just glad you're finally okay!" Allura and Shiro nodded in agreement.

"And you're just in time for a big meal I cooked up!" Hunk straightened.

"Yeah, I know." Keith looked at Shiro and Allura, who snickered quietly. "It was Lance's idea. And Shiro and Allura's."

The other three glanced over at them as well. "Wait, you knew he was up and didn't tell us?" Coran frowned.

"Surprise!" Allura smiled. Lance chucked at Keith's side. "We wanted to get everyone together first." The Paladins shared a quiet laugh, then they began to sit down at the table, ready to enjoy Hunks meal. The Paladins caught Keith up on everything that had been happening recently, although he had a rough idea of it all anyways. Keith hadn't spent this much time with everyone in phoebs. He was always gone with the Blade of Marmora, barely spending anything more than a quintant on the Castle.

"We'll have to call Ryner and Kolivan soon." Pidge sat up, pushing away her empty bowl.

Keith's already serious grew sad and his eyebrows pulled together. He knew they should, but he didn't want to. He had already gotten more attention than he was accustomed to. He didn't want them to make a big show of it. Something else was on his mind as well and he glanced at Lance. "I guess we should." He eventually responded, staring at the table in front of him.

Shiro raised an eyebrow. "Is something wrong, Keith?"

"No." His eyes met Shiro's. "Let's just call them."

"We should clean up first, then we will." Allura nodded, standing up. One by one, everyone filed out of the room and into kitchen, placing their bowls in the dishwashers.

Before they left the room, Lance pulled aside. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"I just have a lot to catch up on. I've got a lot on my mind." Keith shrugged, looking into Lance's sea blue eyes. Lance nodded in understanding and stroked Keith's face before following the others. Keith sighed and walked with him. After putting away their dishes, the group made their way up to the bridge. Allura first called Ryner on Olkarion.

On the other end of the line, surprise crossed the Olkari woman's face. "Princess, it's good to finally hear from you!" A smile formed on her face as Olia and Matt appeared on screen behind her. "We were beginning to fear the worst. Matt told me Keith was starting to get better."

Allura smiled and looked away from the screen to Keith, who stood just out of view. "He's doing a lot more than better." She gestured for him to come closer as the three rebels on screen frowned in confusion. Keith's eyebrows rose slightly and Lance playfully pushed him forward.

"Keith, you're awake!" Matt gasped the second he saw Keith. The corner of Keith's lips pulled up and he looked up at the three of them.

"It's good to see you both out of those prisoner uniforms." He commented to Olia and Ryner. Olia flashed him a smile.

Ryner nodded thoughtfully. "It definitely good to be free of them. And its all thanks to you and the Blades." She paused. Keith loosely crossed his arms. "What you did was very brave. Drawing those fighters away gave us enough time to get help from Voltron. I just wish it had ended differently." His eyebrows pulled together and he nodded. They both knew nothing could have stopped it from happening. Behind Keith, the other paladins shifted, unsure of how to react. Lance watched him carefully, seeing the pain in his eyes. After a few ticks, Lance met Shiro's gaze and he made a face.

"Ryner," Shiro cleared his throat, understanding what Lance meant. "I understand you're still getting the defense systems up on Olkarion?"

The Olkari woman looked at him. "Yes. It took us a long time to clear everything from the city after that toxin attack a while back. Our ion cannon is running, but all of our other systems are still in progress."

As she spoke, Lance moved closer to Keith and nodded. Relief crossed Keith's tired face and he stepped back, slipping out of view from the screen. "Thanks, Lance." He whispered, knowing what he did. He didn't want to talk about the crash or anything more from that day. It had already taken so much time from him. Lance gave him a small smile and they waited for the transmission to end. After a few doboshes, Allura explained that they had more people to contact and Ryner let them go.

"We should contact Kolivan and Krolia." Allura looked at Keith, readying another call.

Keith's eyebrows pulled up and he turned to face everyone. "If it's alright, I'd rather take this one by myself." His thoughts from earlier resurfaced.

"Of course." Allura smiled, finishing, then she stepped away. Hunk, Pidge, and Coran nodded before heading out. Shiro loosely followed them, but Lance hesitated.

Keith could sense his unease and he gave him a small smile. "Hey, you don't have to worry about anything." He spoke quietly.

Lance's face softened and he smiled back, nodding. "When you're done, I'll be outside ." After a tick, he walked out of the bridge, the door closing behind him.

Keith watched him go before drawing in a deep breath, his face growing serious. Then he started the transmission. After a few short ticks, Kolivan's face appeared on the screen. He straightened when he saw it was Keith calling him instead of Princess Allura. "Keith, I am glad to see you are finally well."

"'Finally' certainly describes it." The young man crossed his arms again. "Is my mother around?" He asked after a tick. He could see a few of the Blades in the background.

"Krolia is just returning from another mission. I will contact her as soon as this transmission ends." Kolivan spoke. Keith nodded. "Your suit is being repaired as we speak. It should be ready by the time you return."

Keith's eyebrows pulled together and he looked down. "About that, Kolivan. I don't know if I will be returning." He paused. "I know what happened wasn't your fault, and I'm glad almost everyone made it out safely, but it took a lot of time away from me. I need to recover in ways other than physically and I can only do that here."

"I understand." Kolivan spoke and Keith met his gaze again. "You are always welcome back into the Blade of Marmora. Until then, I'm sure we will see each other one way or another." With that, Kolivan ended the transmission. Keith stepped back, feeling like a weight had been lifted off his chest. With a smile, he turned around and ran to the door, finding Lance outside.

"Keith, are you alright?" Lance stepped away from the wall he had been leaning against. He was surprised that Keith was running. Instead of answering, Keith looked around, seeing if anyone was in the hallway with them. Then he pulled Lance close and kissed him, wrapping his arms around him. Lance closed his eyes and relaxed into Keith's arms. Warmth flowed between them as Lance cupped Keith's face in his hands. Ticks later, Keith slowly pulled away, looking into Lance's sea blue eyes. Lance blushed. "What was that about?"

"I'm staying." Keith grinned. "I'm staying here with you. I've already spent too much time away." Lance gave Keith a big smile before hugging him tightly. "I love you."

"I love you more." Lance whispered in his ear.

Keith laughed, pulling away and taking his hand. "Come on, let's go tell the others." Lance grinned and they began walking down the halls, looking for the others. Eventually, the pair found the Paladins and Coran in the lounge. Lance let go of Keith's hand before they entered the room.

"Hey, guys!" Hunk greeted them. "How was talking to Kolivan and your mom?" Keith and Lance stepped down into the couch area, joining the others.

"Well, my mom wasn't there. She was returning from a mission." Keith shrugged. Allura frowned slightly and Shiro sat up. "But I did talk to Kolivan." He paused, looking at everyone. "If it's alright, I'm going to be staying here. I told him I was done with the Blades, at least for awhile."

"Of course it's alright!" Pidge jumped up excitedly. "Besides, it'll give Lance someone to make fun of!" Lance laughed at Keith's side. Snickers came from the others. Keith rolled his eyes, relaxing back on to the couch.

Shiro's eyes met Keith's. "Keith, this has always been your home. I know things have changed since we first landed on Arus, but we'll always be here for you. You don't have to ask for our permission to live in the Castle." Allura nodded at his side. Hunk and Coran smiled.

Keith's eyebrows rose. "You're right. Things have changed since then. And that's why I'm staying." His eyes met Lance's, a smile forming on his lips. Lance fought a blush, barely stopping it. After a tick, Keith looked back at the others. "Which is why I need to come clean… why we need to come clean." Confusion crossed Hunk, Pidge, and Coran's faces. Content smiles formed on Shiro and Allura's lips. Lance sat up beside him, a serious expression on his face. "I hope this doesn't change your minds about us, but Lance and I have been together for five… er, five and a half phoebs now. We've decided it was time to come out to everyone."

"I knew it!" Pidge shouted, bolting to her feet. Keith started, surprised by the sudden reaction. Shiro stifled a laugh. Shocked looks crossed Hunk and Coran's faces.

Allura looked over at Pidge. "How did you know?"

Pidge grinned. "The mice are great at charades." A subtle blush lit up both Keith and Lance's faces.

"Wait… you guys are dating? And you two knew about it and didn't bother telling the rest of us?" Hunk glanced at everyone wildly. "Did anyone else know?"

Keith and Lance exchanged glances as Shiro silently raised his hand. Allura continued to smile at Shiro's side. "It wasn't our secret to tell." Her eyes met Keith's and she nodded. The corners of his lips pulled up.

"Uh, Coran, are you okay?" Lance commented, noticing his silence. The older man looked like he had been frozen, except his eyes. They could almost see the equations flying through his brain.

"Give him a dobosh." Allura laughed.

As they waited for Coran to start functioning again, Hunk stood up and crossed the room. Keith straightened, unsure of what he was doing. Hunk grabbed them both and held them in a big, bear hug. "You have my approval." The couple laughed in his arms. Pidge poked at Coran's shoulder. After a few ticks, Hunk released Lance and Keith, stepping back.

"Thanks, buddy." Lance grinned, wrapping his arm around Keith's shoulders.

"Wait a tick!" Coran climbed to his feet, the shock wearing off. The others froze in concern. "You two are gay?!"

Keith opened his mouth to speak, but Lance beat him to it. "Actually, he's the gay one. I'm bi." Keith rolled his eyes as Shiro chuckled.

Coran nodded before grabbing them and pulling them into a tight hug. "It's about time you two!" Keith squirmed in his arms, barely able to breathe. The others laughed as he released them.

After a dobosh, Allura looked up at Shiro and smiled. Shiro glanced down, warming flowing through him. "I don't want to steal your guys' thunder, but I don't want there to be secrets between all of us." She tore her gaze from his. "Shiro and I are also together." Shiro nodded and wrapped his arm around her.

"What?!" Hunk, Pidge, and Coran turned around, more shocked about them than they had been with other two. Keith and Lance laughed at their reactions.

"It just happened, so calm down." Shiro snickered.

Pidge's face grew sappy. "Oh my god, space mom and space dad are together." Allura and Shiro's faces lit up like a red Christmas tree. Keith could barely contain his laughter.

The Paladins and Coran spent several vargas in the lounge, enjoying the happiness that now filled the Castle. The hallways were no longer lonely and long. Gloom no longer consumed their faces. Everything was finally back to the way it was supposed to be. Keith and Lance were beyond relieved that the others were accepting of them. They had all just finished dessert, which hunk had made, when an alarm went off in the Castle. Everyone straightened and Allura stood, pulling up a screen. At first, they couldn't see anything in the reaches of space, but then a small shuttle came into view. Allura smiled and dismissed the alarm. "Keith, someone is here to see you." She turned to face him. Keith let go of Lance's hand and stood up, looking at the screen closer with a frown on his face. After a tick, he recognized the small vessel and his face brightened. Then, he ran for the door, heading to the shuttle bay. A smile crossed Lance's face and he watched his boyfriend go.

"Who is it?" Pidge asked, confused.

Allura looked at the girl, her smile growing. "Krolia."

Keith ran to the shuttle bay as fast as his recovering body could carry him. Being in a healing pod for fourteen quintants had its downsides. He felt out of shape and could barely catch his breath. Krolia had already docked her ship and had bolted outside when he reached the entrance to the shuttle bay. When he reached the door, he had to stop for a tick, huffing breathlessly. Krolia's purple eyes locked on to him and gleeful tears filled them as she closed the gap between them. "Keith!" Her arms wrapped around him. "Thank the stars, you're alright!" She cried into his hair.

Keith held on to his mother, still barely able to breathe. "I'm okay." He huffed into her neck. "I'm so glad you're here." He slowly pulled back to look up at her, tears filling his own eyes.

"I turned around the tick Kolivan called me. I had to see for myself that you were awake." Her large hands cupped his face. "I… I hadn't heard from anyone in more than a movement. I was beginning to think I had lost you." She sniffed through the tears, her purple eyes looking over every inch of him. It filled her with joy to see that there wasn't a single scratch on his body.

Keith grinned. "I'm a fighter, like you." Krolia smiled back, her tears soaking her face. She hugged him again, barely able to stop herself. She held on to him for a long time. She had to reassure herself that he was there.

A dobosh later, a sound came from behind them and Krolia released her son, looking behind him. Keith looked over his shoulder to see Lance approaching them. A smile formed on his pale face and they both walked up to him. "It's good to see you again, Krolia." Lance grinned. He held his hand out, wanting to shake hers.

Instead, she abruptly hugged him, lifting him a little off the ground. The young man let out a surprised squeak and Keith laughed, glad they had officially met while he was out. "Thank you... for watching over him." She eventually set him back on his feet.

Lance gave her a big grin. "It's my job to be here for him." His sea blue eyes met Keith's. Keith blushed. "If you feel like it, the others would love to see you." Lance looked back at Krolia. She smiled and nodded, gesturing for him to lead the way.

Keith listened to Lance quietly singing, feeling the vibrations in his chest. His voice was so melodic. It resonated off the walls of Keith's small room and gave Keith a sense of peace, something he had not felt for a long time. Lance's long fingers ran through Keith's black hair and stroked his face. Keith breathed in slowly, tracing Lance's chest. "Keith?" Lance spoke when he was finished with his little song, looking down at him in the dim light.

"Yeah?" Keith shifted, looking up at Lance.

"Did you really leave the Blades for me?" He spoke timidly, closing his eyes.

Keith smiled and pulled himself closer so that his face was inches away from Lance's. "Lance, to be honest, I joined them for you."

Lance's eyebrows pulled together and her eyes flashed open. "What?"

"Do you remember when you came and talked to me about having too many Paladins?" Keith paused. "I joined the Blade of Marmora so you could still be the red Paladin." Surprise crossed Lance's face and he struggled to find words. "But yes, I left the Blades for you." Keith placed a gentle kiss on Lance's forehead. "I'm not leaving you ever again."

Lance relaxed beneath Keith as a deep blush colored his face. "I don't deserve you, Keith." He stammered as Keith grinned.

"But you do love me." Keith flashed a smile.

"Yes. Yes, I do." Lance stroked Keith's face with his hand, a large smile tugging at his lips. "Come here, you." He pulled Keith closer and kissed him, tangling his fingers in his mullet. Keith laughed on to his lips and pulled the sheets over their heads.


End file.
